Mission Family: Résumé tool helps spouses highlight experience

With the military’s heavy moving season upon us, the thoughts of many spouses often turn to résumé writing.

Even if your résumé is up to date, you might consider refreshing it with a new tool developed specifically for military spouses called Career Spark, from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.

Among other things, it helps spouses translate volunteer experience into practical work experience. The tool includes information about some 900 volunteer positions — not just volunteering on military bases, but also for other organizations, such as the PTA, for example, said Noreen O’Neil, director of the chamber foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes Military Spouse Program.

“Once you start using it, it triggers other things you may have done,” O’Neil said.

It’s free for spouses of active-duty service members, veterans, National Guardsmen and reservists, as well as surviving spouses.

The foundation commissioned Washington, D.C.-based marketing agency iostudio to develop the tool. They worked with various military organizations to get information about volunteer position titles and responsibilities. They also worked with Blue Star Families, which has an employment tool kit that provides information to help spouses translate volunteer positions into skills that employers need.

Career Spark uses this information to populate its résumé tool. For example, a spouse club treasurer’s job would translate into skills such as paying bills, maintaining a budget and working with auditors. It asks for work experience and volunteer experience in the same section, guiding spouses to enter their information, then populating the résumé with the information in an employer-friendly format.

Military spouses, as well as human resources directors and recruiters in many sectors, have tested and reviewed Career Spark.

“Being a military spouse means constantly juggling a lot of different demands and responsibilities, responding to shifting priorities and working well under pressure — all skills that employers find valuable,” said Noeleen Tillman, managing director of Blue Star Families. “Career Spark helps military spouses translate those skills and many others into résumés that resonate with civilian hiring managers.”

The tool is similar to its companion developed by the chamber foundation, the Personal Branding Résumé Engine for veterans and transitioning service members, which helps translate military experience into skills that civilian employers understand.

In addition to the résumé tool, Career Spark provides information on a variety of job-searching topics — such as tips for dressing for job interviews in different industries (with pictures), and how to get an interview. It connects spouses with virtual networks that help maintain connections through military moves and into life after the military.

Some people may enjoy writing résumés, but for many others it can be a chore. It’s a good idea to always keep your résumé up to date, regardless of whether you’re actively searching for a job. Why not try out a tool that could possibly give you that edge to get the perfect job?

It might make résumé-writing easier and even — dare I say — fun.

Karen Jowers is the wife of a military retiree.

Tricare Help: It will cover some co-pays for other insurance

Q. I’m a retiree who is eligible for Tricare but has other health insurance, to which Tricare acts as second payer. When I receive treatment and have a co-pay, can I bill Tricare for the deductible portion of my OHI cost?

A. Yes. In most cases, Tricare will pay some, if not all, out-of-pocket costs that OHI does not. And even if Tricare does not pay those costs, either in part or in full, it’s still worth filing a secondary claim with Tricare because the amounts billed may count toward meeting your Tricare annual catastrophic cap. Your health care provider can file such claims for you.

Humana Military, one of Tricare’s regional contractors, has a comprehensive brochure about how Tricare works with OHI. You can find it here: http://ift.tt/1lKLiXL.

Q. I am a few months pregnant, and my military husband is about to leave for Afghanistan. I know that if he dies while deployed, all my prenatal care and the birth will be covered. But will the baby be eligible for health care coverage?

A. You have no worries. If an active-duty member dies in service, his or her spouse and children are considered “transitional survivors” for the first three years after the death. During that time, spouses and children remain covered as active-duty family members, and their Tricare options and costs do not change.

Children continue to be covered as active-duty family members for as long as they remain eligible for Tricare as the surviving children of an active-duty member. But after three years, the status of the surviving spouse shifts to that of a retired family member. That change is automatically reflected in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System, and the surviving spouse receives a letter detailing the change. At that point, the surviving spouse remains eligible for any Tricare option for which military retirees normally are eligible, and costs are the same as that of a retiree beneficiary.

Should your husband die before the baby is born, the baby will still be covered as outlined above.

Q. I’m a 42-year-old military retiree who has just been awarded 100 percent total and permanent VA disability compensation. I am covered as a retiree under Tricare Standard. I know I can get free care at a VA facility, but if I use Tricare through a civilian provider, will VA act as a second payer?

A. No, VA will not act as a second payer, for the simple reason that the VA medical system is not “health insurance”; it is direct care, delivered through hospitals and clinics owned and operated by VA. However, Tricare considers VA to be a Tricare-authorized network provider, so Tricare will act as second payer in covering VA co-pays and deductibles.

But as a 100 percent, service-connected disabled veteran, you are in a VA beneficiary category that is never charged co-pays or deductibles. So for any care you receive in a VA facility, Tricare would never have to enter the picture as a potential second payer.

Ask the Lawyer: Sniffing legal substances is still against rules

Q. Can the military punish service members for getting high off legal substances?

A. Just because products that are innocuous when used appropriately, such as glue, gasoline and nail polish remover, are not designated as controlled substances doesn’t mean service members can inhale or otherwise abuse them without risk of discipline. It just means that the government will not be able to prosecute the service member who inhales, sniffs or “huffs” them for their intoxicating effects under Article 112a of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which addresses the wrongful use of a controlled substance.

Instead, service members caught huffing can be prosecuted under Article 92 for failure to obey a lawful regulation. Various branch regulations that address substance abuse, such as Secretary of the Navy Instruction 5300.28E, Air Force Instruction 44-120 and Army Regulation 600-85, prohibit inhalant abuse.

For example, the Navy instruction states: “Although not illegal to possess, using chemicals illicitly for purposes other than what they are intended for, (e.g., rubbing alcohol, ethanol), and propellants and inhalants (e.g., dust-off, nitrous oxide), is prohibited.”

Similarly, the Air Force instruction notes that possession of any intoxicating substance, including inhalants and propellants, “if done with the intent to use in a manner that would alter mood or function,” would constitute an Article 92 violation.

Huffing also may lead to a charge under the UCMJ’s general article, Article 134. In fact, under that article, “any substance abuse offense not covered by Article 112a may be charged as a violation,” the U.S. Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals noted in U.S. v. David B. Deserano (1995).

Further, case law supports that the government doesn’t even have to prove service members had a specific intent to get high by engaging in huffing activities; it only has to prove wrongful use of inhalants.

In U.S. v. Charles A. Caporale (2013), the Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals noted that glue sniffing violated the UCMJ even before the creation of Article 112a in 1983. According to the court, examples of intoxicating substances that can lead to Article 134 violations include nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas and used as a propellant in whipped cream canisters, as well as cold and cough medicine.

Service members charged with abusing legal substances should immediately contact a military law attorney. Depending on the circumstances, an attorney could show the service member did not know the intoxicating effects associated with the inhalation or consumption of the substance.

Mathew B. Tully is a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and founding partner of Tully Rinckey PLLC (www.fedattorney.com). Email questions to askthelawyer@militarytimes.com. The information in this column is not intended as legal advice.

Fallen Rangers posthumously awarded Bronze Star

Six months after they were killed by an IED in Kandahar, Afghanistan, Sgt. Patrick C. Hawkins and Spc. Cody J. Patterson of the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment were posthumously awarded the Bronze Star with Valor Device during a combat awards ceremony Tuesday at Fort Benning.

Maj. Gen. H.R. McMaster, commander of the Maneuver Center of Excellence, also presented a Silver Star, the third-highest military decoration for valor, 10 other Bronze Stars, 33 Purple Hearts and 18 Army Commendations with Valor Device for the Rangers actions between Aug. 20 and Dec. 17. During the period, the battalion conducted more than 140 missions that killed or captured 250 enemy insurgents and leaders.

Hawkins, 25, and Patterson, 24, were going to aid eight Rangers with a series of improvised explosive devices when they were killed Oct. 5. The soldiers, who were aware of other possible roadside bombs, entered the area to evacuate the wounded to a medevac helicopter on the ground.

“These Rangers sacrificed themselves in an attempt to provide aid to wounded members of their assault force in dire circumstances,” the citation stated.

Spc. Samuel Rae Crockett was awarded the Silver Star for his actions on Oct. 5 when an assault team encountered multiple roadside bombs while searching for a Taliban network leader. Eight members of the strike force were injured after three IEDs went off. Jani, a multi-purpose canine, was sent after a fleeing insurgent hiding in vegetated terrain when the enemy detonated a suicide vest, killing himself and the canine.

First Lt. Jennifer M. Moreno, 25, assigned to the Madigan Army Medical Center at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., went to aid a wounded soldier when she triggered an IED and died instantly.

Moments later, Patterson stepped on a similar device. He and Hawkins were mortally wounded. Special Agent Joseph M. Peters, assigned to the 286th Military Police Detachment in Vicenza, Italy, was the fourth soldier killed as he triggered two more devices.

After another roadside bomb detonated and left a Ranger’s right leg amputated, Crockett rendered aid to the wounded soldier and cleared a path for the helicopter landing zone to recover casualties and equipment from the battle field. He was responsible for recovering the body of Moreno.

“Despite the imminent danger inherent to maneuvering through the IED belt, Spc. Crockett repeatedly elected to enter uncleared areas and in the process, recovered 14 total personnel,” the citation stated.

Bronze Stars were presented to Sgt. 1st Class Moradda J. Tedesco, Sgt. 1st Class Kerry S. Wertz II, Spc. Logan T. Howard, Senior Airman Tristan S. Windle, Staff Sgt. Aaron A. Arnold, Staff Sgt. Ryan L.Flora, Staff Sgt. Richard J. Cessna, Staff Sgt. Kelan W. Horton, Staff Sgt. Zachary P. Skinner and Cpl. Joshua L. Hergis. The Rangers were cited for helping to recover wounded soldiers from the battlefield and to clear the area of explosives.

Arnold of Medway, Ohio, said the challenge shows what soldiers are made of as Rangers.

“I was proud to see all of my other brothers up there” said Arnold, the recipient of a Bronze Star and Purple Heart. “I’m happy to be in such a great organization. Proud to serve with fellow Rangers.”

Staff photographer Robin Trimarchi contributed to this report.

'Most capable destroyer in history' to be christened Saturday

BATH, Maine — The U.S. Navy will enter a new age Saturday when the first DDG 1000, the USS Zumwalt — “the most capable destroyer in history” — is christened at Bath Iron Works.

The $4 billion guided missile destroyer, designed to provide missile and gun support for troops ashore, boasts advanced technology and the ability to accommodate advanced air missiles, rail guns and lasers. That advanced technology has led the new class to be dubbed “stealth” destroyers.

In November 2001, the Navy introduced the Zumwalt-class guided missile destroyer “as a transformation in the traditional design of destroyers that would make surface combatants more versatile, more survivable and more relevant to combat ashore,” defense industry analyst Loren Thompson said Tuesday. “I think the lead ship in the class has pretty much borne out [those] claims.”

The Zumwalt’s “multi-mission” capability — allowing it to engage in surface, littoral (shallow water) and air warfare — will be critical to the Navy in its heightened focus on Pacific, officials said.

“This vessel has so much more fighting potential than past destroyers that it may be the best solution for surface warfare in the Pacific,” said Thompson, of the Lexington Institute, based in Arlington, Va.

New technologies on the ship include a multifunction radar system designed to allow the ship to get closer to land without being detected; two advanced gun systems that fire Long-Range Land Attack Projectiles that can reach up to 63 nautical miles; an integrated undersea/anti-submarine warfare detection system; and a vertical launching system.

Perhaps more importantly, the Zumwalt’s integrated electric power will allow the Navy to add advanced air missiles, radars, rail guns, lasers and other advanced tools that will be important as the combat environment — and potential threats — evolve, Navy spokesman Lt. Robert Myers said.

During a November 2013 tour of the warship, U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel told BIW workers that the DDG 1000 “represents [an] important part in our Navy’s security. That its first assignment will be in San Diego … represents an important shift of our balance and assets and focus in America’s interest in the Asia-Pacific.”

In 2008, the Navy curtailed the Zumwalt class at three ships — all to be built at BIW, with the DDG 1001 due to join the fleet in 2017 and the DDG 1002 due in 2020 — based on concerns about escalating cost projections. But Thompson, the defense industry analyst, said Tuesday that once the destroyer joins the fleet, it may prove worth the price tag.

Despite its size — 610 feet long, 12 stories tall and weighing 15,760 tons — the DDG 1000 requires a crew of only 130, less than half the size of crews required by the 510-foot-long Arleigh Burke class of destroyers it was supposed to replace.

The Zumwalt class also requires an air detachment of 28 to operate two MH-60R helicopters and a Vertical TakeOff and Landing Tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, or drone.

And its guns provide a high rate of accurate fire, at less expense, to support U.S. forces on land, Thompson said.

“Other destroyers could provide support using missiles, but the guns are cheaper and more effective in supporting ground troops,” he said, adding that the Zumwalt “substitutes computer logic and automation for crew so that over the lifetime of the ship, it is less expensive to operate, even though it’s bigger than a legacy destroyer. It’s a paradox of Navy budgeting that sometimes ships costing less, over the long run look more expensive because of the upfront investment.

“I think as the Zumwalt joins the fleet and its advanced features become better appreciated, the whole question of whether the program should have been stopped will be revisited,” he said.

The first of three Zumwalt-class destroyers underway at BIW, the DDG 1000, will carry the name of a chief of naval operations who waged a campaign to fight racism and sexism throughout the fleet.

Adm. Elmo “Bud” Zumwalt Jr., chief of naval operations from 1970 to 1974, is credited with transforming the service into “a kinder, gentler place to serve,” his son, retired U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. James Zumwalt, said Tuesday.

The elder Zumwalt worked throughout his 35-year Navy career to achieve equality for women and minorities and better conditions for enlisted men and junior officers, his son said.

“He really did what he could, as Time magazine described, to drag the Navy ‘kicking and screaming into the 20th century,’ for minorities and women,” James Zumwalt said.

As the son of two doctors who practiced during the Depression and didn’t focus on being paid, “I think it was the humanitarian aspect that he grabbed on to and let it rule his life,” the younger Zumwalt said.

But not everyone will be celebrating the new destroyer’s christening. Members of Maine Veterans for Peace, among other groups, will gather across the street from the Bath shipyard Saturday to call for the diversification and conversion of BIW to civilian uses.

Calling the ship “a colossal waste of money,” Bruce Gagnon, a member of the group that has protested such christenings across from the Bath shipyard for more than 10 years, said Tuesday that while Zumwalt’s efforts to bring racial and gender equality to the Navy “are positive … in the end, we have to remember that the military’s job is to kill people and break things up into pieces, smash things and destroy things.”

“The strategy of the Zumwalt is provocative,” he said. “To sneak up in a stealthy way on the coast of China and be able to blast them … is very dangerous at a time when things are already dangerous enough. How do we stop this madness? How do we end this community addiction to military spending? It’s an epidemic across the country because military spending is the only game in town anymore.”

Saturday’s event begins at 11 a.m. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, among others, will speak to those gathered.

Members of Congress rarely hiring veterans, survey says

WASHINGTON — Members of Congress often urge federal agencies and the private sector to hire military veterans, but a survey suggests they rarely follow that advice with their personal staff.

The survey says veterans made up less than 3 percent of the staff in the congressional offices that responded. The survey was conducted by HillVets, an organization of veterans serving in government.

Slightly more than half the 535 congressional offices elected to respond to the survey. Lawmakers held a press conference Tuesday to discuss its results and to unveil a new fellowship program they hope will increase the number of veterans working on Capitol Hill.

Under the program, veteran fellows will be assigned to a lawmaker's office where they will learn about the legislative process and how to assist constituents in dealing with federal agencies. The fellows will earn a certificate once they complete the program, which lawmakers say could give them an advantage in finding more permanent work.

Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, said he constantly hears lawmakers discuss the need for others to hire more veterans.

"'You've got to hire veterans. Let's hire veterans. This is our duty.' You hear it on the floor a lot," Young said. "When we found out the percentage of veterans on this Hill, I was disgusted."

Young said the small percentage of veterans on Capitol Hill reflects the need for lawmakers to do a better job of outreach. Other lawmakers said it can also be difficult to find veterans who want to work on their staff. Rep. Bill Enyart, a former member of the Air Force and adjutant general of the Illinois National Guard, said many of the workers on congressional staffs are young, often just out of college, and willing to work for low pay. He said many veterans are older, have families and simply need to find jobs that pay better than those on a congressional staff.

"A large part of the problem is frankly, we pay our staffers miserably," said Enyart, D-Ill. "We need to pay these veterans a decent living wage so they can afford to work for us."

Federal agencies generally have a much higher percentage of veterans that work for them. Veterans made up about 29 percent of new hires in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2012.

Among the lawmakers who announced the new veteran fellowship program were Reps. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., and Mike Michaud, D-Maine. Fellowships will be unpaid, but lawmakers were exploring how to provide the veterans with a stipend. Thompson said the fellowships represent a start and are often "where a lot of permanent jobs get started."

Clinton at Naval Academy: Snowden leaks pose important questions

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Former President Bill Clinton told Naval Academy midshipmen on Tuesday that accused National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden may be an “imperfect messenger,” but he has posed important questions about security, technology and freedom in America.

Clinton said Snowden’s leaked secrets about government surveillance should force future leaders to consider how to balance the use of technology for national security without destroying the liberty “of basically innocent bystanders.”

Speaking before the 4,400-member Brigade of Midshipmen and students from dozens of colleges attending a foreign affairs conference, the former president said technological surveillance must be designed to keep tabs on terrorists and criminals without impeding on the rights of peaceful people — even if it costs more money.

Clinton rejected the notion that America faces an "either-or" choice about privacy and national security.

“Don’t buy into false choices,” he told the midshipmen. “There are enough choices you have to make as it is.”

In his 51-minute speech at the academy’s Alumni Hall, Clinton also spoke about the promise technology holds to give voice to more people, to share stories across the globe. He cited the role of social media in spreading word about political issues in Egypt and the Ukraine.

But technology and social media have a flip side, Clinton said: They can be used by those with ill intent.

“All the technology in the world will just increase both the intensity and scope of empowerment of people who want to bring things together — and the empowerment of people who want to keep things apart,” he said.

Clinton’s speech was the Forrestal Lecture, the centerpiece of the annual Naval Academy Foreign Affairs Conference, which draws 150 midshipmen and other undergraduate students to Annapolis for three days of discussions of foreign affairs. This year’s theme is “Human Security in the Information Age.”

The lecture is named for the late James V. Forrestal, the nation’s first secretary of defense from 1947 until 1949. Forrestal also was secretary of the Navy at the end of World War II and served in the Navy in World War I.

The Forrestal Lecture often draws big-name speakers to Annapolis. In 2012, Hillary Rodham Clinton, then the secretary of state, delivered the lecture.

The former president said he researched past speakers and was most worried about following in his wife’s footsteps. He said he read her speech from two years ago and thought it was better than his. Her response was: “Well, that’s as it should be.”

Other conference speakers this year include retired Air Force Gen. Michael V. Hayden, the former director of the CIA and the NSA; John D. Negroponte, a former ambassador to several countries who is now with a nonprofit security organization; and Marina Kaljurand, Estonia’s ambassador to the United States.