Q: How can we raise awareness of the Parent Transition rooms set up in various schools? These rooms are part of a partnership between military parents, School Liaison Officers (SLO), and the schools. A: Learn more at the SLO Facebook page www.facebook.com/sandiegoschoolliaison and look for more information to come on NBSD's Facebook regarding these exciting initiatives for military families. Q: I know someone in housing that was told they couldn't have a pet when it was related to their treatment. I think it was a therapy animal. Why is that not allowed? A: Families with special needs are highly encouraged to contact the Fleet & Family Support Center (FFSC) Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP) Liaisons at (619) 556-6899. Families with special needs have access to a wide range of benefits and resources, and can also get the most recent and accurate policies from the EFMP Liaisons. Q: Why can't pets be allowed in all military housing neighborhoods and not just limited to some neighborhoods? A: While many of our military families own pets and therefore choose a pet-friendly neighborhood, many of our current and future residents express a strong desire to live in pet-free neighborhoods. The Navy and Lincoln balance those competing desires from our families by designating certain neighborhoods for pets and certain neighborhoods as pet-free. In addition, some neighborhoods are more conducive to pets, i.e. homes have larger yards; while other neighborhoods are not conducive to pets, i.e. small balconies/patios only. For these reasons we must limit which neighborhoods accept pets. Sailors can choose particular neighborhoods as long as specific requirements are met such as rank, bedroom/dependent numbers. Q: Why don't all the housing neighborhoods have air conditioning? A: Several factors including location, proximity to the ocean, and age of the homes explain why not all neighborhoods have air conditioning (A/C). In general, housing built prior to 2000 did not have A/C installed. Since then, our newer housing has had A/C installed. Available funding is also a factor. Each year, the Navy and Lincoln assess and prioritize necessary improvements to the neighborhoods. Over the past several years three neighborhoods (Murphy Canyon, Chesterton and Mira Mesa Ridge) have been retrofitted with A/C. The Navy and Lincoln continually assess and prioritize necessary improvements to the homes based on safety, quality of life and resident feedback. Unfortunately there are not enough funds to install A/C in all our neighborhoods. Q: Can Naval Medical Center San Diego offer evening walk-in hours for routine support? Right now, there are three hours in the morning (0600-0900) but this doesn't work for people with children in school. A: For any patient questions or concerns about hours of operations, please contact (619) 5326418. Q: How can families learn about the heritage and appreciation events in advance, like November Native American Heritage celebration events at various commands? A: The information for NBSD is posted on Facebook or the Sailor can inquire at their command.
Q: We're seeing commands have to do more jobs with fewer people, resulting in more work for everyone and longer hours. What can be done? A: The Navy's ongoing efforts to properly shape the force in support of the 21st Century Sailor and Marine means leadership will continue to adjust to create the optimal balance to meet the needs of the mission as well as the family. We will continue to look at our manning and Sailor qualifications to minimize the hours while maintaining the highest readiness. Q: How can I find spouses in my area? A: Contact your FFSC at (619) 556-7404 and ask to speak to a Work & Family Life Consultant in the Information & Referral program. They can talk to you about the various opportunities to meet other spouses and fun social and networking events offered by FFSC. FFSC offers Spouse Orientation & Area Resources (SOAR), which includes a tour of San Diego, as well as Spouse Social Hours with meet-up opportunities in various community parks. FFSC also offers the League of Extraordinary Spouses, with an accompanying Kidz Craftz hour. New spouses are highly encouraged to attend Spouse Readiness Workshop, to learn all about Navy resources and benefits. FFSC can also give you a list of other fun and educational opportunities, including the invaluable COMPASS Program for Navy spouses. Learn more about FFSC at www.Facebook.com/FFCPSanDiego or by calling (619)556-7404. Q: I'm a stay-at-home mom and I use the Child Development Center (CDC) for drop-in care but I'd like to reserve something more than 30 days in advance. Can I time-share a permanent childcare spot with one or two other families that don't need full-time care but do want the stability of long-term placement for a few days each week? A: CDC offers fulltime and hourly care only. As a program, they don't prorate childcare fees. They offer hourly care at several locations to meet additional hours if needed. Childcare Resource and Referral (CCRR) at 619.556.8491. Q: Why can't we donate leftover food from ship and galley meals to food banks? A: There are very stringent guidelines about food safety, including amount of time that it can be left out before becoming a health hazard. For safety reasons, the food banks are unable to accept cooked food of this kind. Q. How can I as a spouse be notified of happenings/celebrations/recognitions at my sailor's command? A. Connect with your Command Ombudsman to get better connected with the command. If you do not know your Command Ombudsman, FFSC's Ombudsman Coordinator can be reached at 619-556-7422 or Stephanie.dubose.ctr@navy.mil. Q. What are the housing requirements and who do we contact regarding Housing policies which we feel need to be changed (pet policy specifically-some housing areas allow pets, others do notfamilies are dissatisfied with reasons provided at local housing offices-ie: allergies, new houses, etc). I’m tired of the run around and passing of blame for decision making. A. Lincoln Military Housing together with the Navy establish housing requirements and polices. All resident with concerns or requests, regardless of the issue, should contact the Lincoln's local district office. After contacting the local Lincoln District Office the resident can contact the Lincoln General Management Office (GMO) at 858-874-8100. If the issue is still unresolved
after contacting the Lincoln GMO, the resident can contact a Navy Housing Supervisor at the Navy Service Center at 619-556-8443 to discuss the issue. Q. Why aren't there more 'remote' area services/support/connection opportunities for those families who live in Menifee, Murrieta. We feel disconnected. A. The Family Readiness Express hosted by FFSC does venture to those remote locations to provide services & Camp Pendleton does welcome Navy spouses. Q. We need our teachers and schools to understand military dynamics. How can that happen? A. Our SLOs have worked very hard and many schools now host "Family Connection Rooms" specifically for military. Please connect with our SLO to learn more about the program and the rooms at www.facebook.com/sandiegoschoolliaison. Q. When will there be a 'business swap' organized to share with other Navy spouses who run home based businesses? Why can't we set up a resource fair specifically for those who have home based businesses? A. While we agree that promoting such businesses is a wonderful idea, unfortunately, Navy ethics rules and regulations prohibit us from promoting individual businesses on the base. If you would like to start a home business, FFSC does offer a workshop called "Insights to a HomeBased Business" which discusses how to set up a home-based business, what questions to ask, what to watch out for, etc. Q. We don't know anyone in the military where we live. A. Contact your FRG leader or Ombudsman to see about gathering spouses who live near you and possibly set up some type of connection with them. The 'Connection Rooms' in the schools are also a great resource.