VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- All Airmen should prepare themselves and their families for the possibility of deployment. Having a family plan in place helps alleviate the stress of deployments. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Jonathan Olds)

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Do you have your plans in order?

Published March 4, 2010
By Maj. Jennifer Ford
30th Range Management Squadron

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Do you know what Air Expeditionary Force you are assigned to? Do your loved ones know when that time frame is? How prepared are you and your family for a deployment?

These are questions all Team Vandenberg members should ask themselves and should know the answer to. No matter how fit you are, how trained you are, how "ready" you think you are, if your family is not prepared for you to deploy, you are not ready to deploy. As members and as commanders, it is everyone's job to make sure all areas of your life are prepared for deployments.

Any time I explain to a non-military person what I do and who I work for, I inevitably get asked, "Have you been to the war?" My response is "Yes, I have been, twice in fact. And I will go again when my country asks me to." Some people are very surprised by this answer and even a little taken aback. The next question is usually, "How could a mom of two little ones under the age of three be willing to deploy?" I am willing because my family is prepared. We have a plan, we have a support network and my husband is well aware of the commitments I made to my country when I raised my right hand.

I encourage you to talk to the people in your life that mean the most and explain to them the possibility of deployments. In the "readiness" world, units that have more than 10 percent of their personnel deployed are considered "stressed"... Vandenberg currently has seven units in the stressed category. Your spouse or you may very well work in one of those units, or you may need services from those stressed units. Deployments impact almost every person on this base. It is a topic all military members need to discuss with their families.

Every family should have a clear understanding of what they will do when the military member is asked to serve their country in a "forward location." Kids need to be familiar with what this will mean to them: Who will pick me up from school? Who is going to coach my soccer game? Spouses need to understand how they will communicate with the member's home unit; how they will be able to communicate with you; and how the household will run when you are gone. It is imperative to have this conversation and create a plan the whole family agrees on before the plan has to be executed.

Your unit has a plan for most contingency situations. Most units have very detailed plans for how to get you ready to deploy. Does your family have a plan? Talking about this possibility before it is a reality will do wonders for your ability to handle the stress of preparing to deploy. There are many helping agencies on base that can work with you and your family to prepare you for a deployment; I encourage you to contact them early - say ... now - to work on that family plan. The Airmen and Family Readiness Center and the chaplain are two awesome sources of guidance.

Please, talk to them and to your family, so that you can be completely ready when your country calls you.