TESTER Naval Air Station Patuxent River
Vol. 72, No. 10
Women of Influence Page 2
Harriers Go Digital Page 4
70 years at Naval Test Pilot School Page 8
Celebrating 71 Years of Community Partnership
March 12, 2015
By the numbers in 2014 NAS Patuxent River 13
Volunteers
1
Combat Casualty Assistance Visiting Nurse
52
98
Moms and dads attended a Budget for Baby workshop
8,153
60
Gift bags with handmade blankets and other items provided to expectant parents
6,157
400
Home visits and other contacts to provide Combat Casualty Assistance
39,430
101
Home visits and other contacts with mothers and newborns, elderly retirees, widows and widowers
23,384
257
Individual clients
63,800
$196,620
Total assistance
$48.5 million
U.S. Navy photo by Shawn Graham
Capt. Heidi Fleming, NAS Patuxent River commanding officer, provides remarks during the 2015 Active Duty Fund Drive KickOff event March 4. The fund drive will be held through April 6. To donate online, visit www.nmcrsfunddrive.org/paxriver. Service members can donate via allotment; see your command’s representative for details. To locate your command representative, call Maureen Farrell at 301-342-4749.
Building 409 sidewalk work
Roadwork and sidewalk and curb repair at Building 409 is expected to close the front parking lot and the side drive between buildings 409 and 480 beginning March 30. To minimize impact, work will be done in three phases and should be completed in May. Only two entrance doors will be open at a time. All work is dependent on weather and the schedule could change.
Navywide 4,000
Interest-free loans from NMCRS
Sailor encourages others to make the right decision By Donna Cipolloni NAS Patuxent River Public Affairs
Master-at-Arms 1st Class Matthew Ellis not only believes it’s OK for service members to seek financial assistance from the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society (NMCRS) when they need it, he believes it’s the best decision they can possibly make. Offered the opportunity to speak in anonymity, Ellis, with Air Fleet Reconnaissance Squadron (VQ) 4, chose to share his personal experiences with NMCRS because he wants other Sailors and Marines to know there is nothing to be ashamed of when a little help is required to get over the hurdle of an unexpected expense. Ellis first used the organization’s services about four years ago, when after a PCS, or permanent change of station, took him and his wife, Diana —who was pregnant at the time — to Rota, Spain. The couple had to pay more
than expected to get there and lived their first 10 days in a Navy Lodge. With no money for groceries, they went to NMCRS for a Quick Assist Loan until payday. “No one judges you, no questions were asked and it was quick and easy,” Ellis said. The purpose of the Quick Assist Loan is to combat service members turning to predatory lenders with ridiculously high interest rates, noted Maureen Farrell, director of the NMCRS office at NAS Patuxent River. “Active-duty service members can get an interest-free loan up to $500 in just 15 minutes or less with their LES and ID card in hand,” she said. “It’s that simple.” Recently, the Ellises had occasion to visit NMCRS again. At Pax River about a year, they purchased a home and used their savings for the down payment and other expenses related to closing. Additional unexpected house repairs took their emergency fund and, be-
fore they could replenish their nest egg, the hot water heater gave out and their car broke down. “It’s not like we didn’t have a savings plan,” Ellis said, “but sometimes the backup plan fails, too, when the unexpected happens.” This time, the loan amount of more than $1,000, required some paperwork — such as written repair estimates and the preparation of a personal budget. “They work with you based on how much income you have left over after you pay your bills and that’s how they determine your specific monthly payment,” Ellis said. “Other lenders don’t ask what you can afford to pay back. And you only repay the loan amount, not one penny more.” Anyone receiving relief from NMCRS need not worry about their situation becoming public knowledge or being reported to their command. “We take confidentiality very
Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society Services
• No-interest Quick Assist Loans up to $500 • Interest-free loans and grants for emergency and unexpected needs • Assistance for family members for undergraduate education • Budget counseling and financial education The Pax River NMCRS office is temporarily located in Building 409, 2nd floor. Hours are 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Thursday. For more information, visit “http://www. nmcrs.org” www.nmcrs.org, phone 301-342-4739 or email Maureen.Farrell@nmcrs.org. seriously and our clients’ business stays in this office,” Farrell said. “We do not release any information without the service member’s permission.” The Ellises believe so much in the NMCRS mission that, back in Spain, Diana volunteered her time and worked her way up to coordinating all of that office’s 84 volunteers. Here at Pax, her husband is serving as his command’s Key Representative for this year’s fundraiser, which runs through April 6.
The couple wants other service members to get past the stigma and realize how beneficial NMCRS can be, especially with its volunteers who understand the military lifestyle. “It’s by far the best decision you can make over seeking loans elsewhere with big interest payments that can ruin your credit,” Ellis said. “And the volunteers in the office are us — military spouses, retirees, veterans. They understand, and that’s why they care.”