JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- When joining the military, most people have a general plan for how long they want to serve and what job they want to do. When those plans are altered due to illness, injury or wounds, service members may be referred to the Service Member and Family Assistance Center to connect with helping resources and find answers to important questions.
“The typical individual worries we hear most are about ‘how can I take care of my family?’” said Russell Black, SFAC director. “They are banged up and want to know what their next step in life is. [Service members] may have joined the military to spend 20 years and retire to enjoy those nice amenities. But what happens when that gets cut short?
“When you look at the general population, which includes service members, people with a handicap or disability have an 85 percent unemployment rate,” said Black. “I was dumbfounded by that number. So when I talk to service members, they want to know what’s next. That is what we address every day.”
The SFAC works with 61 different agencies throughout the state of Alaska, including the Disability Loss Center, veterans associations, and the congressional delegation in Alaska. They also work closely with a number of training agencies. Black said the employees and partners at the SFAC use these resources to get service members in a good position with a clear plan for their future.
“Whether you are using a state agency, Department of Veteran Affairs or a job center, everyone is going to ask you one question: What do you want to do?” said Black. “A typical service member’s response is ‘I can do anything’. They can’t do brain surgery … so we help them start boiling it down. For this, we developed a program, Strategic Life Planning, where we try to find out what it is they want to do so they have a mission and a sense of purpose. Once we develop the mission and sense of purpose, then we make an executable plan so every day when their boots hit the ground, they are moving towards that objective…that goal.”
This is when Barbara Hopkins, SFAC community readiness consultant, steps in.
“A lot of times an individual doesn’t understand what a goal is,” said Hopkins. “They may say ‘I want to buy a house’, but that is a want, not a goal. When you put a plan in place to purchase that house, then it starts becoming a goal. When you say you need to save a certain amount of money per month and start to “S.M.A.R.T” your plan and make it executable, then you have a goal. That means it is specific, measurable, attainable, you look at your resources, and you have given it a timeline.
“Interestingly, when the program first started, people had these goals that they wanted to do and then found out, as they were working on their plan, which their interests lay elsewhere. The goal in the beginning was just identified because they felt they needed to have a goal. Sometimes, the goal is actually to find your goal! But in the end, it is theirs and not ours. Russell always says if your goal is to do nothing and sit on the moon eating corn flakes, then we won’t tell you it’s right or wrong; we will help you develop a plan to get there.”
She said that theory was put into an unexpected test when a young man said he wanted to be a space miner. Hopkins talked to him for a while until she believed she understood exactly what he wanted. She said he definitely wanted to mine in space. During her research, Hopkins found a company hiring to train people in how to space mine and colonize Mars. She sent him the information, and said he was shocked; he had been searching everywhere for the opportunity. When he told her he was not expecting such a successful interaction, she simply told him ‘you said this is what you wanted.’
Black said approximately 90 percent of SFAC clients leave with a solid plan and well-paying jobs. Programs tailored to the individual are one reason for this. When they do a 10 Steps to a Federal Job class or resiliency training, a consultant follows up with each person to see what they need. Black said in every aspect of the center, they try to create more of a personal and family atmosphere.
“Military is family,” said Black. “It’s your life; it’s not just a job. When you are getting cut off from that life there is a lot of hurt involved. There is a withdrawal process which they go through as well. But when you have a plan and can look to the future and see that it doesn’t look so bad, then there is a tendency to keep moving forward. That is kind of what we became experts at doing, helping individuals move forward.
“When people ask us what we do, what I have come up with is: we solve problems,” said Black. “If they don’t fit one program, we search through our resources and try to find what the need is and bring that family together with that resource to get the problem resolved.”
To do this, Black said he looks for one main qualification when hiring staff.
“I can teach people to do the job,” said Black. “What I can’t teach is to really care. The biggest thing I have to say is that every person in this building genuinely cares about the individuals walking through these hallways. Everyone has gone the extra mile, worked the extra hours, made themselves available and done whatever it takes to get the job done. Why? Because we really do care. I think it’s our biggest strength and how we are able to get the job done.”
Although the staff diligently maintains the facility, Black said the SFAC is not about them.
“This is the service members’ building,” said Black. “We want to make sure they know somebody always has their back when they get injured. That’s why we have a paralegal, a recovery care manager, and a representative for the VA vocational rehabilitation and employment over here. The SFAC family partners with service agencies to make sure the clients get holistic care.”
Black said people tend not to know about their program until they are put into the Integrated Disability Evaluation System when they are profiled or in a Medical Evaluation Board or Physical Evaluation Board process. He said although their primary population is the ill, injured or wounded, if anyone, of any service, needs information or assistance they won’t turn them down.
“Its one fight and we are all in it together,” said Black. “All we need to see is ‘U.S.’ on the uniform.”
For more information about the SFAC, visit the center at Bldg. 4986 or call 580-0673.