thedrifter
09-13-05, 01:25 PM
September 19, 2005
Recruiters search for 1,000 poolees missing since Katrina
By Gordon Lubold
Times staff writer
Recruiters in the gulf region are scrambling to find some of the roughly 1,000 poolees who had enlisted but had not left for boot camp before Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, according to recruiting officials.
Meanwhile, Corps recruiters and officials in New Orleans and the surrounding area are scattered across the region, from a hotel in Dallas to a new office in Baton Rouge, still trying to make mission despite the fact that military service in that area may be the last thing on many prospects’ minds.
While officials have lowered their recruiting mission for September for recruiters in the affected region, recruiters in the southeastern states are also focused on trying to re-establish contact with people in the Delayed Entry Program, who were awaiting shipment to Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, S.C.
Many of these poolees, some of whom lost their homes or are dealing with other losses, may no longer be able to go to boot camp, further compounding recruiters’ problems in the region.
A spokeswoman for 6th Marine District, based at Parris Island, said recruiting stations in New Orleans and Montgomery, Ala., which include several satellite locations, both report they are now trying to find about 500 poolees, as prospective recruits are called.
Once they find them, recruiters are working with them on a “case-by-case basis,” 2nd Lt. Staci Reidinger said.
“If his house got blown away or something detrimental happened to his family, they are going to give him that time — a month or two, maybe longer, if he needs that — to get things back in order so he is mentally and physically ready to go to boot camp,” she said.
Although the storm hit at the end of August, 6th Marine District was slightly ahead of the game and still made its monthly shipping mission for August, officials said.
But September and October may be a different story. Officials have already adjusted the recruiting mission for RS Montgomery and RS New Orleans due to the fact that the New Orleans station is “in a state of reorganization,” Reidinger said. It could not be learned as of Sept. 9 by just how much officials had reduced their mission.
It’s not clear what impact the disaster will have on the Corps’ overall recruiting mission this year, but the disaster comes at a time when recruiters were not making all their monthly goals. Despite years of success, the Corps’ recruiting machine began to sputter this January, when the Corps failed to contract enough poolees to meet goals that month. Although recruiters are still making their shipping numbers — those who actually go to boot camp each month — the contracting numbers have been down.
The hurricane affected recruiters, as well.
The disaster in the gulf region has uprooted more than 50 Marines and their families from Recruiting Station New Orleans and several substations in the area that belong to 6th Marine District, based at Parris Island.
RS New Orleans no longer exists; officials are already in the process of permanently moving the recruiting station to Baton Rouge, about 70 miles away, Reidinger said.
In addition to the New Orleans offices, offices in Slidell and City Park, La., were also damaged, and Marines were evacuated. Officials are awaiting word on a number of other offices, Reidinger said.
Recruiting Station Montgomery, Ala., which also falls under 6th District, remained unscathed and “fully operational,” she said. But many of its substations and smaller permanent contact stations were damaged due to the storm, Reidinger said.
Although the New Orleans recruiting office itself appears to be dry and intact, recruiters and other personnel based at the station have permanently moved to higher ground, she said.
The hurricane and resulting flooding also forced the evacuation of several dozen Marines and personnel assigned to the headquarters for 8th Marine District, which is also located in New Orleans. Those Marines and their families are now living and working out of an Embassy Suites hotel in the Dallas area. Headquarters aside, no recruiters were affected within 8th District, officials said.
Ellie
Recruiters search for 1,000 poolees missing since Katrina
By Gordon Lubold
Times staff writer
Recruiters in the gulf region are scrambling to find some of the roughly 1,000 poolees who had enlisted but had not left for boot camp before Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, according to recruiting officials.
Meanwhile, Corps recruiters and officials in New Orleans and the surrounding area are scattered across the region, from a hotel in Dallas to a new office in Baton Rouge, still trying to make mission despite the fact that military service in that area may be the last thing on many prospects’ minds.
While officials have lowered their recruiting mission for September for recruiters in the affected region, recruiters in the southeastern states are also focused on trying to re-establish contact with people in the Delayed Entry Program, who were awaiting shipment to Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, S.C.
Many of these poolees, some of whom lost their homes or are dealing with other losses, may no longer be able to go to boot camp, further compounding recruiters’ problems in the region.
A spokeswoman for 6th Marine District, based at Parris Island, said recruiting stations in New Orleans and Montgomery, Ala., which include several satellite locations, both report they are now trying to find about 500 poolees, as prospective recruits are called.
Once they find them, recruiters are working with them on a “case-by-case basis,” 2nd Lt. Staci Reidinger said.
“If his house got blown away or something detrimental happened to his family, they are going to give him that time — a month or two, maybe longer, if he needs that — to get things back in order so he is mentally and physically ready to go to boot camp,” she said.
Although the storm hit at the end of August, 6th Marine District was slightly ahead of the game and still made its monthly shipping mission for August, officials said.
But September and October may be a different story. Officials have already adjusted the recruiting mission for RS Montgomery and RS New Orleans due to the fact that the New Orleans station is “in a state of reorganization,” Reidinger said. It could not be learned as of Sept. 9 by just how much officials had reduced their mission.
It’s not clear what impact the disaster will have on the Corps’ overall recruiting mission this year, but the disaster comes at a time when recruiters were not making all their monthly goals. Despite years of success, the Corps’ recruiting machine began to sputter this January, when the Corps failed to contract enough poolees to meet goals that month. Although recruiters are still making their shipping numbers — those who actually go to boot camp each month — the contracting numbers have been down.
The hurricane affected recruiters, as well.
The disaster in the gulf region has uprooted more than 50 Marines and their families from Recruiting Station New Orleans and several substations in the area that belong to 6th Marine District, based at Parris Island.
RS New Orleans no longer exists; officials are already in the process of permanently moving the recruiting station to Baton Rouge, about 70 miles away, Reidinger said.
In addition to the New Orleans offices, offices in Slidell and City Park, La., were also damaged, and Marines were evacuated. Officials are awaiting word on a number of other offices, Reidinger said.
Recruiting Station Montgomery, Ala., which also falls under 6th District, remained unscathed and “fully operational,” she said. But many of its substations and smaller permanent contact stations were damaged due to the storm, Reidinger said.
Although the New Orleans recruiting office itself appears to be dry and intact, recruiters and other personnel based at the station have permanently moved to higher ground, she said.
The hurricane and resulting flooding also forced the evacuation of several dozen Marines and personnel assigned to the headquarters for 8th Marine District, which is also located in New Orleans. Those Marines and their families are now living and working out of an Embassy Suites hotel in the Dallas area. Headquarters aside, no recruiters were affected within 8th District, officials said.
Ellie