On September 14, 1970, Admiral Elmo Zumwalt Jr. signed the official Navy Family Ombudsmen Program into existence, writing:
“The importance of the navy wife as a member of the navy team cannot be over emphasized…. All shore based commanders shall establish procedures which give navy wives an opportunity to present complaints, viewpoints, and suggestions to commanding officers.”
In the fifty years since inception, the program is now open to all spouses of Sailors, and has continued to grow and evolve while serving its mission of supporting and serving the families of the Navy community. In addition to serving as liaisons between command families and the command, ombudsmen welcome arriving families, serve as a source of emergency and crisis information, and coordinate services for families during deployment.
“These selfless volunteers are crucial to the success of our Navy,” writes Admiral Michael Gilday, Chief of Naval Operations. “The contributions Ombudsmen make to the success of a command's mission are immeasurable. Their support to Navy families enable Sailors and commands to focus on mission requirements while knowing that their families have a trained and reliable resource to provide support on the home front.”
Here onboard NAS Sigonella, Agata Carnazza serves as the Ombudsmen Coordinator at Fleet and Family Support Center.
Each command is required to have at least one ombudsmen but may have more. “If someone is interested, they should contact Fleet and Family Services,” said Carnazza, “or they can go directly to their command and offer their services.” After being appointed by their commanding officer, ombudsmen take a three-day training. “Our next training is October 28-30, or there’s one online every month,” Carnazza added.
Usually, NAS Sigonella ombudsmen meet on the second Thursday of every month to discuss business and take advanced training on different topics that affect military families. There is also a dedicated space for ombudsmen in the FFS office, including a computer, a small library, and a quiet space to work on projects or meet with people in a professional environment.
In addition to collecting questions from families and bringing them to the command at monthly meetings, NAS Sigonella ombudsmen present at the spousal orientation and at sponsor training.
During the coronavirus pandemic, NAS Sigonella’s ombudsmen worked overtime making sure families were kept up to date on the quickly changing situation. Instead of monthly meetings, the ombudsmen met via teleconference every week, getting information directly from the CO or XO as well as the Public Affairs Officer to provide to their commands. “The ombudsmen have played a huge role during this difficult time,” said Carnazza.
Because of the coronavirus mitigation precautions, this year’s 50th anniversary celebration will look different than years past; however, ombudsmen will still receive certificates of appreciation as well as gifts from MWR as a thank you for their hard work.
| Date Taken: | 09.18.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 09.29.2020 06:52 |
| Story ID: | 378885 |
| Location: | SIGONELLA, IT |
| Web Views: | 13 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Navy Ombudsmen Program Celebrates 50th Anniversary, by Megan Mills, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
