JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas –
Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph's Family Advocacy Program exists for military members, their families and Department of Defense civilian ID cardholders to help handle the stresses of family life. But in addition to daily family issues, the military lifestyle presents unique stressors of its own.
In response, Randolph is taking measures to alleviate or even eliminate the stressors that can potentially lead to domestic abuse and maltreatment.
"We want to give people the tools and life skills to proactively avoid maltreatment and domestic abuse," Capt. Amanda Hardy, 359th Medical Operations Squadron Family Advocacy officer, said.
Randolph Family Advocacy offers counseling services that promote healthy family foundations. Randolph members can turn not only to Family Advocacy personnel, but also to chaplains, health care providers and victim advocates who represent JBSA for issues with domestic violence. The program responds to reports of child abuse and neglect as well as spousal abuse that fall under the four components of domestic violence - physical, emotional and sexual abuse, as well as neglect.
"It's difficult to judge what constitutes abuse on a case-by-case basis, but people have the option to do something called restrictive reporting," Hardy said. "This keeps their report in-house (confidential) without notifying the active-duty member's command chain."
This sense of anonymity and privacy can help couples better deal with stress that can lead to domestic violence.
However, this option is not available to couples who have contacted the police for immediate correctional purposes.
Stressors that can particularly harm a military family's dynamics are deployments that can leave a family one spouse short for a prolonged period of time, and members' transitions back into family life after being away, Hardy said.
"During times of hardship, spouses can look to other family members and friends for support, but that all depends on their level of comfort," she said. "One of the biggest things couples can do to strengthen their relationship is respect each other. During arguments, people often get caught up focusing on what they are going to say next as opposed to listening to the other person. Couples will not always see things eye to eye, and that's OK, but they must respect each other."
Family support classes are offered to all JBSA community members. To view and enroll in classes that address multiple family life issues, visit www.fortsamhoustonmwr.com. Click on "Calendar," then use the dropdown arrow on the calendar to filter "Home & Family Support" classes, where member can view a listing of all available classes throughout the month. Members can see what JBSA location the class will be taught at once they click on the hyperlinked class.
For immediate assistance and information, call the Randolph Family Advocacy office at 652-2448. Call 247-0049 to speak to Dorie Budde and other legal advocates for abuse in the San Antonio area. The Bexar County Family Justice Center can be reached at 208-6800.