Norfolk Sailors - Family & Friends

angies and miss G my son is HM14 also.

I will be having dinner with your son and Cassidy on Monday after they pick me up at the airport!! can't wait. I am an artist and am bringing them a housewarming painting. I can't make up my mind between a painting of three pears that art three colors, red, green and yellow. or a painting of a single peony flower in a glass.

or an encaustic painting of golden trees. Do you have an opinion? I have been asking our CHATTY mom group.

Thanks Qball00  They are from Georgia of course they will be better than great, I think it is so cute that Cassidy posts with y'all's. I will give them both a hug from you.

Had my sailor for two weeks! It was wonderful. On her way back to Norfolk now. I sure miss her already. Does it ever get any easier? Seeing her once a year, after her always living at home, really stinks. About 350 more days till I can see her again!

I am headed for Norfolk tomorrow to see mine come in from deployment. We will take him home with us, hoping his twin will get a chit to drive up so we can all be together for the first time on over a year. I did get to see my norfolk sailor in early June. So maybe you will see her twice a year.

Dad of Sailor - or anyone that can help

Whomever my sailor is talking to they are not letting him add his wife's daughter as a dependent for BAH.  They say he can claim her on taxes but that is it>.  Is that right?  Doesn't make any sense.  Also, he put her into DEERS and did all the paperwork on Friday.  He was told that there wasn't any base family housing for almost 4 months.  This sounds crazy.  Also, how does she get orders from the military to get out of her apartment lease. I was told that there is some formal form that has to be accepted by apartments for military families.  Finally, they are having difficulty finding a place that my son doesn't call "Rat infested" - any current ideas?  I heard BAH has been cut - is that true. Sorry so many questions but need help on a lot of things right now.

tatmom-

BAH is not based on the number of dependents, just if you HAVE dependents. So he won't get more BAH for adding his wife's daughter anyway. In Norfolk there are usually pretty long wait lists for base housing. It's not common to get housing right away, there is usually some length of a wait. Regarding her current lease - where is she living, is it in Norfolk? Does her lease have a military clause? Is your son's name on the lease as well? Usually just a copy of his orders to a different duty station is all that is needed to get out of a lease, but you have to read the lease's terms. For example if they don't have a military clause then they don't have to let you out of the lease with his orders. And there are still requirements, you can't just walk into the office with orders and expect to be out the next day. Most still require 30-45 day notice. And yes, BAH has been cut for 2014. Here is the link for how he can figure out what his BAH will be: http://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/site/bahCalc.cfm

to BT no it doesn't get better, we just need to be reassured by them that they love where and what they are doing.  That makes everything OK, because that is all we really ever wanted for them while raising them, right.  Keep the Faith.  CA

tatmom,

abuon18 was correct on all counts...you don't add multiple dependents for BAH, it's only with dependents or without. There is a waiting list for base housing on almost every base, some of the waits can be a year or longer depending on the base. 4 months is a pretty short wait from my experience.

He can get out of a lease if he receives PCS orders or orders to deploy under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. He will have to give notice though and there are specific requirements on giving written notice. The information is available online or he can go to the legal office for assistance.

abuon and Dad of Sailor - thanks

I thought that I had heard that housing was quicker for the sailors that had families to care for.

Also, does the  Service members Civil Relief Act only apply to the service member when reassigned?  or is it something his wife can use here in Colorado?

Tatmom4rc- where in co are you? You can friend me if you don't want to give it out on here.

CharlotteAnne-well then I guess I should stay on my knees for her because she hates it there and her "job". So sad. She still has 2 1/2 more years there. 

tatmom,

It would be best to have him consult with the legal office on base or on his ship if he is on a Carrier. They will be able to review his specific situation and tell him what he needs to do. The problem that mostly arises with these situations is if the lease was entered into after the Sailor already had the orders knowing he would have to break it. This doesn't sound like the case in your situation but the legal office would be the best place to get advice since they deal with these issues every day.

lily ter'swife

you guys are very fortunate  Maybe your husband has been in longer. I don't know my son is E4 and just ending his second year.  He has absolutely no help from the Navy.  He seems to continuously run into problems and his direct line of command don't seem to be too interested in working with him or helping him out.  He has been on the barge for quite a while - even when he was trying to get base housing.  Then he got married and she had a 1.1/2 year old girl and he then submitted for family base housing and got no where.  So last weekend he went out and found a place.  He is not very confident in the Navy helping with moving his family from Denver without a lot of problems (due to past history).  So he plans to move them and submit paperwork afterwards hoping to get reimbursed.  I am very happy for you and your husband - at least the system works sometimes.

.

Tatmom, I don't think your son will be eligible for moving expenses if he is bringing his wife to his current duty station. They will pay for a service member and the family to move but not for her to join him if he has been there a while. He can talk to PSD (personnel support detachment) and they will explain this further. Base housing is limited, especially for single sailors. There is frequently a waiting list for families, as well. If his command has a chaplain, that can be a great resource, or have him call the Fleet and Family Support Center at 757-444-2102. Folks there can direct him to the resources he needs.

Yeah tatmom, if he got married after he executed his PCS orders the Navy isn't going to pay to move the family. That is done on PCS orders. He should speak to the personal property office but I'm almost positive that is what he is going to be told.

tatmom,

Has he been to the housing office and got on the waiting list? His immediate Chain of Command has nothing to do with that and he should be able to do that all himself. Do you know what he is trying to get his Chain of Command to help him with that they are unwilling to do?

just fyi...A single-seat Navy FA-18E Super Hornet crashed 45 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach Wednesday afternoon, pilot recovered and in critical condition.  http://www.wavy.com/military/f-18-crashes-off-coast-of-virginia-bea...

Prayers for that Navy pilot's full recovery~~  Also, for protection in Norfolk that there be no more accidents~~

Amen to that catmom509! Doesn't that make 3 in that area in the last 2 weeks? What's going on?

Beachmom78 and Dad of Sailor

Thank you for your information.  I replied back a couple of days ago via my cell and I guess the messages don't show up here.  Let me know if you got them.  Yes he was on a waiting list, but all that is behind us now.  He went out and got his own place about 12 miles from where he works in Chesapeake. IT is still sad to me that the navy doesn't recognize a family after the sailor has been located somewhere.  Their lives change and so there should be some way that the Navy could see the need to be a bit flexible as well.

So fun to meet you John and Yvonne, Our sailor appeared right after you left. Oh my was so happy, The best part of the last two days was watching my twins have a great time together, enjoying being together again after a year separation. Was worth the trip right there!

CO-Twin, I have 2 pics that you may want. My son took 2 shots of your Sailor's ship coming in the other day, while he was on his ship waiting to leave port. I can post them here, or you can send me a friend request and I can send them to you. Glad you enjoyed your time with your boys!!

Hey thanks, that sure is his ship, it was awesome to see. So glad to have him home.

So glad to hear about all the visits to Norfolk and great times for the families.  Love the photos that have been posted.  Thanks

Hello.

My son has just been stationed in Norfolk and is on his way to his ship, I was hoping for some advice on what to send him in care packages and how to send them ? Any help will be appreciated.

try

http://navyformoms.com/group/carepackageideas?groupUrl=carepackagei...

You may have to scroll around some, but along with ideas they have shipping info as well

My son just arrived in Norfolk on Thursday.  It was his first time flying and everything went great until he realized they left one of his bags back at O'Hare.  It was the one with all his clothes.  But they did get it to him the next day so that was good since all he had was his dress blues that he was wearing.  He is living on a barge right now.  He is young and this is all a new experience for him.   He was just happy to leave the cold weather of the Great Lakes.

  He said yesterday was the best day for him so far since he joined.  He is loving the Navy and is ready to continue this exciting new path.  We are so happy and proud of him and all the other military people who are making this sacrifice for our country. His uncle lives nearby and is retired navy, so he is showing him all around this weekend.  I am happy he will get this time with an uncle he hasn't seen for years. 

HuffyMom23 - Welcome. So glad he is enjoying Norfolk!

http://wtkr.com/2014/01/14/uss-elrod-deploys-uss-bainbridge-returns...

Pay attention to the rope work, Steve the sailor on the left.

Please pray for my Dad who is having surgery today, he cracked the head of his femur and they are putting in screws to keep it from separating, might put a kink in his ranch move.

@HuffyMom23 ~ Which ship has your son been assigned?  My son is living on the barge next to the Enterprise at the Newport News shipyard.

He has been assigned to the Barry.  I don't know the name of the shipyard.  I haven't talked to him since he first unpacked everything and left with his uncle.  Are you a sooner girl because of the Oklahoma Sooners?

Has your son been there for awhile? 

My Sailor (son) is there and has been since January 1st. He is APACT.

HuffyMom23 the Barry is in Portsmouth ship yard.  You can search base ship yards on Google

Blake is assigned to the Enterprise (decommissioned 12/1/2012).  The Big E stayed at the Norfolk base until June 2013 and then she was tugged to the Newport News shipyard (where she was built in 1960-61).  The ship will eventually (2015 or 2016) be tugged to Bremerton, Washington ~ after the 8 reactors are completely taken down and removed.  Most of the other ships are at the main Norfolk base.

I am an Oklahoma Sooner fan and that is where my forum name came from.  We used to live in Edmond, Oklahoma and moved to the Dallas area in 2007.  Still <3 my Sooners!  Also an Arkansas Razorback fan.

I hope your son had a great time on the sightseeing tour with is uncle!

Gina

To all of you moms with sailors recently arriving in Hampton Roads: My husband and I open our home on the weekends for the sailors in the area(soldiers and Marines also) to give them a place to go and be away from the barracks or ships or barges. We play board games and of course we feed them! We get together on Saturday nights from 5 to 9 and Sunday from 1 to 5. Let me know if any of them would be interested.

Yvonne and John Wagner

Brrr!  From Norfolk Naval Station just now on FB:  

Winter Snow Warning.  Fleet Weather Center Norfolk is issuing a winter snow warning for Naval Station Norfolk & Chambers Field, from 1300 01/21/2014 until 0700 01/22/2014 local time. This system will bring light to moderate snowfall into the local area Tuesday night with 2-4 inches expected. This warning will either be extended or allowed to expire by 0700 01/22/2014.

Well my son had a wonderful weekend sightseeing with his Uncle.  He took him back last night.

 He called tonight and said he was just sitting around.  He doesn't have a vehicle yet and really wants to start going to the gym.  I told him to ask around and see if they have some type of shuttle or something that will come there to get them since they aren't on the base.  Do any of you know if something like this exists?  He likes to keep busy.

Josh'smom,

He can't be "responsible" for paying for his accommodations while TAD and not be reimbursed. Some piece of information is missing here. He needs to talk to his Chief, the Training Department on the ship or whoever was responsible for writing his orders and get it figured out before the ship gets underway.

What are you meaning by "housing"? Do you mean a barracks room or are you talking about housing for a family? You don't get to take your family when you go TAD and the word "housing" is normally used when talking about housing a family.

If it is just a barracks room he won't have to pay for a week or so, so he has time to get it figured out as long as he does it before his ship gets underway.

Let me know if you have more specifics or questions.

One other thing...if the C School is local they could be requiring him to sleep on the ship and not providing him a barracks room. If the ship is getting underway while he is still in school then that would be a problem. Sounds like there is a miscommunication somewhere along the way.

To:  Josh'smom My daughter was assigned to Norfolk last August and when she arrived, she did not have "housing" and her ship was out on deployment.  It took them awhile to get it all straightened out, approximately 3 to 5 days (I don't recall) but eventually they did.  Eventually, she was sent to the ship and they returned in November.  She recently found out that she can be given somewhere to stay so I'm sure his situation will work out soon.

If his chief is gone he should go to the Training Officer (they call it Train-O) and ask to have the orders modified to reflect the need for a barracks room while the ship is underway. Sounds like somebody forgot to consider that when the orders to attend school were written.