MCAS BEAUFORT, S.C. -- Tri-Command family readiness officers gathered at the Four Winds facility aboard Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island to update each other on what more can be done to help Marines and their families, Nov. 20.
The FROs take care of the Tri-Command families by not only offering resources that will solve issues, but also by giving them classes on communication.
"Family readiness is important because our goal is to empower that Marine and their family to be more self-sufficient," said Deanna Simpson, the Marine Corps Family Team Building director for MCRD Parris Island and the Eastern Recruiting Region. "We also give newcomers the commander’s family readiness statement in the hope that it will set them up for success during their tour."
There are various units within the Tri-Command area and the FROs stand by their Marines to make sure they are well taken care of.
"No matter what the mission is for the base in which FROs are stationed our objective remains the same," said Simpson. "The idea for this conference was for everyone to share their ideas and making sure that we network with each other."
"Networking is very important in our job," said Craig Sproul, the family readiness officer for 6th Marine Corps District. "Since we work with a lot of families, we network amongst each other to share resources."
In order to increase their ability to help families, the FROs occasionally receive a class on a tool that they can use to their advantage.
"We have received classes about what resources are available for our families out in town," Sproul said. "The FROs also pull together to make events such as the annual Kids Fest to make them better for the families."
In their pursuit to help military families, the FROs also help each other by sharing resources and keeping each other in the loop.
"Everybody has a lot of great ideas and they are sharing those ideas," Simpson said. "There may be a time where the FROs will inform everyone of some recurring issues within their battalion or squadron; this allows the rest of the family readiness team to offer their two cents and help them."
Family readiness officers can be reached at any time during the day. Most of them, if unavailable at the office, will provide their cell phone number in the voicemail message.
Due to their hard work, family readiness officers have become an essential piece of mission readiness and troop welfare by offering resources to those in need of their assistance.