YOUR CONCERNS: Q: I found out which party my Seabee will be coming home. How and when will I receive the information for the return flights? A: This is probably the best part of deployment, and can also be the most stressful. We currently do not have flights with confirmed dates. However, as soon as we get confirmation, the Ombudsmen will send out an email with the steps of where to go, and who to call to find out the details. Because our Battalion is transitioning to a new Skipper, Commander Simms will set up how and when the information will be released. And as soon as she receives our dates, she will pass it along to us! So please, stay patient. Q: My Seabee and I had a child or have adopted a child this deploy- ment. Do we receive any special care at homecoming? A: New Daddy Seabees are always first off the plane. However, if we do not have the information, they will not be released off the plane first. Please contact Chief Cosper at 805 982-3612 to confirm that your Seabee is on the list for New Dads. Your Seabee must inform his chain of Command as well in order to be seated at the fronto f the aircraft. There will also be a special area for the new babies and Moms to stand at on the Flight Line at Mugu. Free Military Pillows Many people have heard of the Daddy Doll, or Hug a Hero. We recently received information from a Seabee spouse who found a website that allows you to order a pillow with the photo of your favorite Seabee on it, AT NO CHARGE!!!! It’s true. To check out the website, please visit http://www.pillowprojectusa.com/ to fill out the forms and upload your Seabee for the pillow. Again this is done for free, however the company does ask for a “donation” after the pillow is delivered. The donation request is in the box along with the pillow in a pre-stamped enve- lope. Again it’s a recommendation and is not required. Special thanks goes to Chrissy Boyette for sharing this website with us! MICROSOFT JULY 2010 ON THE BUZZ ON THE BUZZ Ombudsman Contact Information: Brenda Walker (805) 218-2323 Linda Mendoza (805) 218-4096 [email protected]Subscribe to NMCB-4 Ombudsman Newsletter by e-mailing us. Check out our website: http://www.orgsites.com/ca/ nmcb4fst/index.html Facebook (link to Facebook found at orgsites website) Careline (805)-982-2200 Inside this issue: CO’s Corner 2 CMC’s Corner 3 Up Coming Events 4 Calendar & Important Numbers 5 Guess Who’s Coming 6 FRG Friends of Four 7
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YOUR CONCERNS:
Q: I found out which party my Seabee will be coming home. How and when will I receive the information for the return flights? A: This is probably the best part of deployment, and can also be the most stressful. We currently do not have flights with confirmed dates. However, as soon as we get confirmation, the Ombudsmen will send out an email with the steps of where to go, and who to call to find out the details. Because our Battalion is transitioning to a new Skipper, Commander Simms will set up how and when the information will be released. And as soon as she receives our dates, she will pass it along to us! So please, stay patient.
Q: My Seabee and I had a child or have adopted a child this deploy-ment. Do we receive any special care at homecoming? A: New Daddy Seabees are always first off the plane. However, if we do not have the information, they will not be released off the plane first. Please contact Chief Cosper at 805 982-3612 to confirm that your Seabee is on the list for New Dads. Your Seabee must inform his chain of Command as well in order to be seated at the fronto f the aircraft. There will also be a special area for the new babies and Moms to stand at on the Flight Line at Mugu.
Free Military Pillows
Many people have heard of the Daddy Doll, or Hug a Hero.
We recently received information from a Seabee spouse who
found a website that allows you to order a pillow with the photo
of your favorite Seabee on it, AT NO CHARGE!!!! It’s true. To check
out the website, please visit http://www.pillowprojectusa.com/
to fill out the forms and upload your Seabee for the pillow.
Again this is done for free, however the company does
ask for a “donation” after the pillow is delivered. The donation
request is in the box along with the pillow in a pre-stamped enve-
lope. Again it’s a recommendation and is not required.
Special thanks goes to Chrissy Boyette for sharing this website with us!
MICROSOFT
JULY 2010 ON THE BUZZ
ON THE BUZZ
Ombudsman Contact Information:
Brenda Walker (805) 218-2323 Linda Mendoza (805) 218-4096
I am deeply humbled by the opportunity to serve with the family and friends of NMCB FOUR
and I’m looking forward to meeting you upon our return to Port Hueneme. As you know, your Seabees
have had an extremely successful deployment turning a green field into a fully functional forward operat-
ing base and adding to the Seabee legacy in four regions throughout Afghanistan. Having seen Deh Dadi
before NMCB FOUR arrived and seeing what your Seabees have done this deployment is absolutely im-
pressive. The battalion’s success here is directly connected to your selfless sacrifice at home. My introduction to what an amazing battalion this is started two years ago however, more re-cently my experience has been shaped by: watching FOUR step off the plane at Kandahar Airfield in
January, despite having experienced churn with an accelerated departure, they were professional and
poised to hit the ground running; meeting several spouses at this year’s Seabee Ball and again when Jenn
Cobbel and the FRG invited me to a monthly meeting; reading our Facebook page and this publication;
coordinating with Chief Lonnie Cosper on various logistics matters; meeting Brenda Walker and Linda
Mendoza to discuss our Ombudsman Program; and being set up for success by Skipper VanderLey and
XO Hendricks. All of these interactions are indications that the next two years are going to be out-
standing! XO tells me I’m supposed to use this space to introduce myself. There’s no doubt in my mind
that you may have already “Googled” my name (or will since I mentioned it) and have seen particulars
like my hometown and career path. What you won’t read is that honest to goodness, my favorite num-
ber is 4 and I believe in divine destiny. I enjoy listening to jazz, gospel and country music, playing basket-
ball and hiking when my knees are cooperating, and drawing and painting. And I have a 3-year-old dog
(Steve) with ADHD. As my close friends will tell you, I use the word “excited” sparingly, usually the conversation in-
cludes chocolate chip cookies and Disney World (my father wanted to be an Imagineer so we spent a lot
of time there). However, a third source of excitement has been added to my repertoire, joining the
best battalion in the Naval Construction Force. I thank the Creator in advance for the phenomenal two
years ahead and the wonderful people, like you, that I am honored to serve with.
Peace and blessings,
CDR La Tanya Simms
Page 2 ON THE BUZZ
CO’S CORNER
NMCB 4 Careline
Want to know what’s going on with our Battalion? Please
call our careline at 805 982-2200! The Skipper updates the
careline every other week. If you would like to make an
announcement as well please contact the Ombudsmen at
You have missed your Seabee and they have missed you. However,
re-establishing relationships will take time and communication. Its normal for the returning service member to “need space”
upon their return. It’s normal to feel nervous and anxious about the homecom-ing. With your Seabee, make plans for homecoming day. After
homecoming, allow your Seabee to schedule the next few days or
weeks. Expect things to be different. Take time to understand how your Bee has changed. Be prepared and flexible. Remember that
you may have also changed. Take time to get reacquainted. Communicate your love to
each other. Tell each other how you feel-nervous, happy, that you loved
and missed him/her. Listen to each other. The best way to get through the initial
apprehension and regain closeness is to talk and actively listen.
Reassure your Seabee that he/she is needed, and that you are happy they returned safely.
Accept that your Bee may be different. Many people occasionally need help to handle tough challenges in their lives. So seek help if its needed. The Fleet and Family Service Center ,(805)982-5037, is a great place
to go for help. Free counseling and support groups are offered for families of returning service members. If you have children, take time to prepare them for the upcoming homecoming. If you have little ones try
to not bring up the homecoming day until a day or two before the event. Your toddler does not need or
desire a lot of specifics. Details are often confusing to small children, so answer the questions that are
asked by your toddler and try not to go into too much detail. School aged children have a better sense of time, so its fair to tell them about the reunion pretty soon af-
ter you adults know. A child this age is more likely to ask serious questions and may even get repetitive. Be patient and answer their questions while also having them understand that dates and times can still change.
Instead of giving a time, maybe say “daddy will home on this day in the afternoon”. We all know how flights can change by one two or several hours. So the less details you give the easier it will be to prepare your
school aged child for homecoming. For adolescents, you know your teen better than anyone. Talk openly with them about their parent’s re-
turn. Be sure to listen to what their worries or concerns may be. Each teenager responds differently to homecomings. Again keeping the conversations simple and allow for questioning will help your teenager
begin to adjust to the homecoming day. For many families the best friend is keeping a routine!! What are the most important things to your family?
With some families, the thing that matters most is spending their free time together; for other families, it’s their church activities. Whatever your priority is, its important to stick to it through the times of separa-tion and reunion. Its important for you, but even more so for the children, because keeping up the routine
adds stability and security to daily life. The “little things” of daily life in a family include children’s bedtime routines, mealtime routines, regular
chores and responsibilities, homework, bathing, and tooth brushing, older children’s curfews, and so on. Eight months is a long time to be apart. So its not just a matter of stocking up the fridge and spring cleaning the home. Mental preparation is also a requirement. So take time to prepare yourself and your family for this excit-
ing day!! Be prepared that an adjustment time may be needed, and enjoy the fact that soon, you will be one big
Friends of Four Hello NMCB 4 Families and Friends!! Well, we are almost to the end of Deployment. YEAH!!! I hope that eve-ryone is as excited as Bailey and I are to have Dave home. We have one more FRG Meeting that is going to be on Thursday, 15 July from 6-8pm at the Port Hueneme Chapel. This will be a meeting not to miss. The reasons why you should not miss this meeting is that we will have a speaker to talk about things to look for and to help our Seabees get use to being back at home and getting them back into the routine that we have been doing. We will be drawing First Kiss Tickets. You’ll have about 10 minutes to get any last minute tickets or get the ones that you already have into the box before we draw them. Michelle, our Treasurer, is mixing the tickets everyday before the meeting. They will be very well mixed up. This meeting will also be catered. The Ameri-can Red Cross will be bringing desserts for us again too. The last, and I think, the most important reason to come is Chief Cosper might have some information about our guys coming home. So, make sure that you are there for our one last meeting before the Home Coming Picnic on Friday, 10 September. Now, I know that you are thinking “How will I keep myself occupied be-tween now and hubby coming home?” Well, your NMCB 4 FRG does have a couple of things going between now and then. On Sunday, 25 July from 2-4pm at Bowles Field we will have our Secret Sister reveal. If you would like to bring a snack to share that would be great. We’ll have a great time seeing who every-one’s Secret Sister has been for the last few months. Your NMCB 4 FRG is also going to have a booth at this years’ Air Show at Point Mugu. We are still in need of a few folks to fill in some time slots. For more information about helping out, please see Jenn at our next FRG Meeting or send an email. The money have we receive from the Air Show will help to benefit us for the Homeport coming up. The last thing that we will be helping with is the making of beds and dropping off goodies to the barracks rooms that some of our guys will be coming home to. I’ll be sending out an email with more details about helping with this when I get the information. Well, I think that that covers everything that your NMCB 4 FRG has go-ing on. I hope that everyone has a great rest of the summer and we’ll see you on Thursday!! Jenn Cobbel NMCB 4 FRG President [email protected]