When I sat down to write this blog, I wanted to address the questions, problems, concerns that are related to being a Navy Recruiter's wife! Even though we are still part of the "big picture", we are sent to Anytown, USA. I tell people our duty stations are in any given strip mall in America. These places are sometimes hundreds of miles away from a Navy base, and that is one of the top complaints I heard as an Ombudsman. I have Facebook, I get the posts from Fleet and Family Support about the great new child care center that opened in Virginia, or the seminar in San Diego for spouse employment, but here in Houston, or Phoenix, or really anywhere other than the major bases, we don't have access to those "great new services".
That was really hard for me, moving from the largest Naval base in the world, to a city where the closest base was an hour away and it wasn't even NAVY!!! I had to get creative and I had to roll up my sleeves and get messy! I started researching anything on the web that had to do with military, Navy, recruiting. And with the help of Military One Source, I have been able to really educate myself on what is out there for families like mine. I constantly had to remind myself, that I wasn't the only Navy Wife out there experiencing this, so there has to be resources out there for us!
I was surprised at what I found and I wanted to start sharing some of my findings....
YMCA- if you are on Independent Duty (i.e. recruiting) and are not located near a military installation, your family is eligible for a family membership at the YMCA. The YMCA is expanding a program that also provides the same families with a set amount of respite child care FOR FREE each month. Check out this link for more info www.ymca.net/about_the_ymca/military_outreach_initiative.html
We love our YMCA membership, the kids play at the pool all Summer and I have a place to workout! Once again.....for FREE!
MLB- The 2 cities I have been to offer military discounted tickets for their baseball teams. Neither of them were published on their websites either. But they were both for 50% off tickets!
Now this is more of a plug.....but still a discount. Smashburger is the most awesome place to get a burger in all of America! They are located throughout the country. They offer a 50% off discount when in uniform. Check their website for a location near you http://www.smashburger.com/ and don't forget to get the SmashFries!
I want to challenge some of you Recruiters Wives out there to do some research on your own, find something in your neighborhood geared towards military. 9 time out of 10 things like military discounts are not publicized, its through word of mouth through your command that it becomes known. Also our husbands aren't always really good at passing along inforamtion they receive, so I encourage you to be in touch with your command Ombudsman or CMC for Navy-wide services avaliable to you.
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