Norfolk Sailors - Family & Friends

The Navy also makes Sailors list all the meds the are taking when they take the drug test. The problem with the Navy test though is it is zero tolerance and as soon as it comes back positive you're guilty until proven innocent and it is hard for you to use over the counter medications that you're taking for a non doctor diagnosed illness as justification for a positive drug test as they tell you that you can't come up positive from over the counter medications.

I always worried about drug tests during my career because once you get a positive you're looked at as a drug abuser and you are out of the Navy. There is no room for error in the system so I didn't like to take any chances.

CO-Twin,

It's probably all OK as the Navy says they won't cause a positive. I always took vitamins and never thought twice about those.

My son does the same thing, he buys that stuff at the NEX and I tell him to go down to the ships medical and get it for free. He ignores me and does it his way. Just wanted to give you all some options if you were unaware they could get that kind of stuff at medical.

Can they get vitamins at medical? wow. 

The point in send ing then a box is that they don't have to go somewhere to get it when they don't feel well. They would not pay if I send it either.  and it would be on hand when needed.  Not the meds just the other stuff, no chicken soup at medical LOL

CO-Twin,

No, they can't get vitamins at medical unless there is a medical need (pre natal, vitamin deficiency, etc.). I was talking about the OTC medications like Tylenol, Motrin, cold medicines, allergy medications, etc.

Dad of Sailor,

Thanks for the new map.  Gonna need a magnifying glass--yikes!!

Yea, thanks Denise (Dee)!!

Any moms from the (DDG95) James E. Williams mom's out here?  My son just reported this morning.

Hi Everyone!

I don't post much but I do follow what is going on.  Thanks to all who have the navy knowledge and is sharing so much.  It great information and I appreciate it all.

At one point some sailors were looking for a place to stay.  I have information of a room that will be available soon. It's 5 minutes away from base.  If you would like more information about this please private message me.  

Have a wonderful Thursday! 

I haven't been on here for a while, so I thought I'd check in today and see how all you moms are doing. :)  Some of you may know that my husband and I open our home to the sailors on the weekends and feed them and play board games and just hang out together. My husband spent 20 years in the Navy: 10 enlisted and 10 as a Navy chaplain.  So you can see we have a heart for our military men and women who serve our country.  We like to give them a place they can go away from the ship and be in a home atmosphere.  I noticed your comment, kim SHIP 03/DIV 233 that your son just arrived this morning and wanted to let you know that we would be happy to have him join us--we even give rides to those who don't have transportation. :)  And if there any other moms out there who have sons or daughters stationed here, please let them know about us. They can get in touch with us or we them-whichever you or they prefer.  So, if you are interested, please let us know.  Yvonne and John Wagner

John and Yvonne Wagner

I sent you a friend message!

To Josh'smom,

As you probably have just read, my husband and I have been opening our home to the sailors and other military men and women for the last 13 years and we would like to invite your son to join us on Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoons if he would like to when he gets here. I can give you our information so he can call us...and if he needs transportation we would be happy to give him a ride here and back to the base. Let me know what you and he thinks.

Sincerely,

Yvonne Wagner

John and Yvonne Wagner,  What a blessing you are.  Thank you and your husband for opening your home.  Thank your husband for his service and may God bless your family!

As has been said, his ship should be sending a duty driver or his sponsor should be picking him up at the airport. If he has to take a cab he will need to tell the cab driver what ship (and possibly pier) to take him to. His sponsor should be helping him with all this and if he's getting emails from someone that is more than likely his sponsor. The cab driver isn't going to know where to take him unless he tells the cab driver where to take him.

Safe travels for your Sailor.

Debbie,

Make sure he has this information...

If our ship is NOT in port, check in with the USO/Military Liaison Counter at the Norfolk International Airport and they can provide you with transportation information to Transient Personnel Unit (TPU). TPU is located at 1683 Gilbert Street, Bldg J-50 (Nimitz Hall), Naval Station Norfolk. TPU's telephone numbers are -445-9201 or 757-444-9290.

Oh, that makes me feel good that my daughter's sponsor will be making sure that she has transportation from the airport to the base.  She will also need help with picking up her stuff from the baggage claim.  When we picked her up, we divided up her stuff among me and my 2 other daughters.

Will her sponsor also help her with telling her what to put on her travel claim?  Is there a link where I can look this up  My daughter is low on funds as the change ticket to home took a big chunk in her account.  What exactly will be paid back to her after her travel claim is approved?  Travel from home to Norfolk?  Shpping of items from Pensacola to home?  I told her to contact the personal property office in Pensacola to have stuff shipped directly to Norfolk, but don't think she sent anything there.

CatMom,

The Navy should have purchased her ticket from Pensacola to Norfolk which she changed to go home then to Norfolk. All she should have had to pay is the difference to add a stop at home for leave, she should not have to buy another ticket to get to Norfolk now. She won't be paid back anything further for her actual transportation because the Navy already paid for the ticket.

She'll get partial BAH (housing allowance) and BAS for the time period she's on leave. She needs to claim any other travel expenses like cabs and things like that. In total my son got around $500 if I remember correctly once he filed his travel claim.

It's concerning that you're asking about paying to get from home to Norfolk as she should have her original ticket from Pensacola to Norfolk and she should have paid to change it  to a ticket from Pensacola to Home to Norfolk. I hope that is what she has? My son had to pay around $50 to change his to Pensacola to Phoenix to Norfolk and that money comes out of their pocket and they won't get it back because it is for leave.

Let me know if any of that isn't clear.

CatMom,

Forgot to address you shipping question.

If she shipped anything herself (UPS, FedEx, USPS) she won't get reimbursed for any of that. She should have went to personal property before she left and had them ship anything she needed shipped. They would have paid for that but they are not going to pay for her to ship stuff herself through the mail or UPS.

Since she is going to shore duty and not a ship she should have shipped everything to Norfolk and hand carried anything she was going to need in her luggage. She should not have had to ship anything home. The people that have to ship stuff home are the ones going to the ship who are not going to have room for all the stuff they had in their barracks which isn't the case for those on shore duty because they will have another barracks room.

Dad of Sailor, I thought it was that when going from A school to the first duty station, the sailor is responsible for getting their stuff there, whether carrying it all in seabags, or shipping what doesn't fit?  

Marcy,

No, not at all...they are authorized a personal property shipment anytime they PCS. My son went to personal property after A School in Pensacola and shipped stuff home (he had orders to a ship) and stuff to Norfolk. The Navy paid for all that.

They don't do that from HM 'A' school, perhaps because it's just 14 weeks? 

If that's changed, good to know!  BTW are you a member of the Arizona group here?

Oh, yeah forgot this isn't the IT forum, CatMom's daughter is an IT which the school is about 9-10 months and is eligible for a personal property shipment. There is a rule about how long they have to be at a location before it is considered a PCS and not just and intermediate stop. If you're not at the location long enough for it to be considered a PCS then they wouldn't be eligible, I can't remember what the actual length of time is though.

My son was told the same thing you said when he got to Corry Station that he had to pay to ship his stuff himself. I told him that wasn't correct and called the personal property office myself and found they were telling him incorrect information. He went to the personal property office and it was easy to have them ship all his stuff for him at no cost.

I just counted and I guess my son was only at Corry Station for 7 months and that was over the Christmas and New Year holidays so I don't know how long others are there. He was eligible for a personal property shipment.

I am a member of the Arizona group but every time I go in there the stuff is really old and didn't seem to have much participation. Have not been in there in a while, has it got more active?

Dad of Sailor,

My daughter didn't even know if she would receive travel orders until the same day of her graduation and she had to pay for the re-routing to California that same day.  I think she does have a ticket from California to Norfolk with her.  So she can't claim for this re-routing because I think if was a couple of hundred dollars or she implied it was pricey?  I'm a little confused.

Wow, you son got $550 back from his travel claim?  If you don't mind, what was that made up of?  We picked her up, so she did not incur any taxi.  I'm unclear what she is able to claim for.

Also, remember when you gave us that Personal Property Office info in the Pensacola group?  Well, I wrote that down and when she got her verbal orders, I email her the info and told her to contact the Personal Propery Office to make arrangements to ship stuff to home and Norfolk.  Some weights we had shipped to her were sent to us via Priority Mail.  She said shipping to us in those boxes saved her money...  So it seems we all have kids who don't listen to us, even though we are trying to save them $$$ (and you are a Master Chief!!)

Re the AZ group, it's like other groups, it just depends :)   I posted yesterday about a Navy Ball fundraiser coming up Sept 14th, a Comedy Night in Tempe.

CatMom, Josh'smom,

Cat...Yes, I know they don't always listen, I have the same problem with my two. Personal property would have shipped the weights to Norfolk (since she is going to shore duty), if she wanted them to come home to you she would have had to pay that herself. Only the people going to ships can send stuff home, those going to shore duty can only send stuff to next duty station.

The $500 he got was for his BAH (housing allowance) while on leave, BAS (food allowance) while on leave. He didn't have to take any cabs or anything so he didn't claim anything on his travel claim other than just filling out the paperwork so they could figure out anything he was still owed.

He/she will be assisted in filling out their travel claim by their admin department. Everyone does a travel claim upon completion of travel regardless if you have anything to claim or not.

She won't get any money for the trip to California as that is leave and taking leave (vacation) is not covered by the Navy. They will only pay from her current duty station (pensacola) to her next duty station (norfolk). Going home on leave to California is out of her pocket just as it will always be when she takes leave.

Josh's...if he was given a plane ticket to his next command he won't get any reimbursement for mileage, hotel costs, gas, food, etc. If he got a plane ticket he told them he was flying and they paid for a ticket to get him to his next duty station. If he told them he was driving and they didn't get him a plane ticket then he will get paid mileage (no gas, food or hotel) from pensacola to norfolk only. He won't get anything for extra mileage and time to detour to Atlanta. 

With that said, they get BAH and BAS for the entire time starting when they leave pensacola and when they check into their next command. Everyone gets this because they are in between duty stations and the Navy isn't providing them food or lodging so they are paid BAH and BAS for this time period. Those that don't have to pay anything and stay with mom and dad and eat at home still get this money paid to them and get to pocket it.

Dad of a Sailor that is right that is how it worked for my son.

You've made me feel tons better with your advice and enlightenment, Dad of Sailor!!  Nice to know she will get a little back to start padding her account again~~  You deserve a HUG!!

ChambosMom,

So your son automatically received the BAH and BAS on his check while he was home on leave?  Did he receive anything additional after he filed a travel claim that you know of?

My daughter just got paid this past 15th and her check should be more than usual with the BAH and BAS added?

CatMom,

Glad that helped. My son got his in his check with BAH and BAS after he reported to Norfolk. He didn't get his while he was home. ChambosMom said her son was home for 22 days so maybe that is why he got it while home, my son wasn't home that long. How long is your daughter home for?