Helpline gives airmen vital info
by Master Sgt. Eddie C. Riley
Air Force Print News
1/30/2004 - WASHINGTON -- The Air Force will expand efforts to take care of its own Feb. 1 with the 24-hour-a day “Air Force One Source” live helpline for airmen and their families.
The “beyond-the-gate” support and referral service is intended to help address personal and family support needs for active-duty airmen, reservists and Guardsmen. Some airmen are not always near agencies that offer support with child care, finances, legal matters, deployment and other related issues. Certified counselors will be available year-round to answer questions, provide information or guide airmen and their family members to the appropriate resources.
The intent is to ensure all airmen and their families have the right resources they need, said Linda Smith, chief of Air Force family matters at the Pentagon.
“Air Force One Source will give them access to support at all times by telephone, the Internet and e-mail,” Ms. Smith said.
Most base family-support resources are only staffed to help the 20 percent of the population who typically require assistance at a given time, Ms. Smith said. The Air Force One Source staff will provide access to these kinds of resources to those serving remotely, while augmenting the traditional on-base services, she said.
The Air Force One Source staff, contracted through Titan/Ceridian Corp, has nearly 30 years of experience handling geographically dispersed employee calls from Fortune 100 companies. Counselors with licensed clinical social work and employee-assistance certifications, as well as advanced counseling degrees, will respond to Air Force One Source users.
“All (airmen and their families) with an (identification) card can use (the helpline) to get help with a range of concerns,” Ms. Smith said.
Some concerns that may be addressed include making plans to deploy or coming home from a deployment, resolving personal problems, or coping with challenges that come up during the course of a day, she said.
Air Force One Source will be available anytime by phone in the Unites States at (800) 707-5784, internationally at (800) 7075-7844, internationally collect at (484) 530-5913 or at www.airforceonesource.com. The Web site will require customers to log on by using “airforce” as the user ID and “ready” as the password. |
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