Printable View
My husband got orders to go to Okinawa.. He is going to be working at Camp Hansen. From what I heard, there is no military housing there. Would we be living off base or is that even an option.. ? If so how does the housing look out there? Cell phones? Pets? Spouse employment? We are just really overwhelmed with all of this, orders were so sudden.
We recently just got married too, so all of this is new for us. Any advice would be awesome.
Thanks in advance. :D
No advice, but Congratulations on your marriage.
And our very best wishes to you.
Ray & Helen
Taken from MCB Japan's website:
Housing OverviewAll service members assigned to Okinawa on accompanied orders will be required to reside on-base. Additionally, unaccompanied gunnery sergeants, staff sergeants, second lieutenants through captains and warrant officers-1 through chief warrant officers-3 may no longer elect off-base housing and will be assigned to respective bachelor quarters.
Unaccompanied master sergeants, first sergeants, chief warrant officer-4 and above and majors and above, may decline base housing, but must first request approval through their chain of command.
Exceptions to the policy must be routed up the service member’s chain of command for approval, according to MCO P11000.22 and MCBJO P11000.2B.
For more information on the housing policy, contact your service sponsor prior to arriving on Okinawa.
Military Family Housing on Okinawa is administered by Air Force and all personnel must report to the housing office for application upon arrival to Okinawa.
There are over 8,000 military family housing units, spread over 19 different areas island wide. The majority of on-base units are quadruplets, although there are a number of duplexes, single-family homes and high-rise apartments as well. Depending on the time of year, with summer housing requests being the largest, command-sponsored families can expect a waiting period, subject to change, before moving on base. Current off-base housing is considered to be below CONUS standards. However, newly constructed units are now geared toward the western style of architecture and with amenities such as patio, smoke detector, air conditioners, washer and dryer.
Government HousingThe DoD standard for commute time between home and work is 60 minutes or less. Units will be offered on the principle that individuals will be housed in an area within reasonable geographic proximity to their work station. Customers are offered available units within the DoD standard 60 minute commute area. Customers will generally be offered units closest to their duty location but do not have the option to wait for a unit at a specific location. Additionally, customers do not have the option to wait for a specific unit type (single, multiplex, duplex, or tower).</SPAN> The first available unit for grade and bedroom requirement will be offered based on the location priority. This policy will ensure, overall, that residents will be located as close as possible to their duty location and allow the DoD Family Housing Office to meet the required occupancy rate.
"Pet-friendly" MFH is limited, and military personnel should not bring their pets to Okinawa until after learning whether they are assigned to a pet-friendly MFH unit. There is a "no pets in the towers" rule. Personnel who will be at Kinser, for example, may want to consider not bringing pets with them. However, if they do, they may subject themselves to living on the economy for their entire tour. Please learn more about Pets and Military Family Housing on Okinawa.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ray Merrell
Thank you!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marine3451
Thank you!
Does he have accompanied or unaccompanied orders (you did not state)? You just said he has orders and nothing about if you are allowed to go with him.
If the orders are for him only then I highly recommend you don't try to go as you would not be sponsored and not eligible for base housing (probably not eligible for base employment either).
Good luck.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tennessee Top
He has accompanied orders for 3 years..
Thanks [=
My first set of orders to OKI (unaccompanied) came suddenly too. We had been waiting for base housing on CAMPEN for 13 months; shortly after moving in, my orders showed up. My ex stayed in housing the 12 months I was on the rock.
There is another website called "RecruitParents.com". Although it is primarily geared toured parents, there is a ton of information that could be useful to spouses like bases, support groups, official USMC links, USMC terminology, etc. There is a thread for spouses/girlfriends/fiances. One topic is a checklist for new Marine Corps wives. One of the moderators (Marinewife0801) did an accompanied tour on OKI recently and she would be a great resource of info for you having been there (her husband is a SSgt, just completed a tour of duty as a recruiter, and they are now back at Camp LeJeune NC...they have two sons). To get to that thread:
a. Login to www.recruitparents.com
b. Register (free)
c. Click onto "recruit parents message board"
d. Click on "all available categories"
e. Click on "wives, fiancees & girlfriends" (there are numerous pages; you may have to search a little before finding Marinewife0801 then you can send her a PM and establish contact...she will be happy to answer your questions)
You should visit the MCFTB (Marine Corps Family Team Building) on your base. They have a LINKS (Lifestyle, Insights, Networking, Knowledge & Skills) program for family members that will orient you to life in the USMC.
Welcome to the Marine Corps. It takes a special person to be married to a Marine; most cannot or will not do it (my ex lasted 3 years). As you are learning, your lives will be governed by the "needs of the Marine Corps". Best motto for a spouse: "Semper Gumby" (always flexible...as you know already).
Hey! We're in Oki right now and my husband is working on Hansen as well. Family housing for Hansen is mostly on Camp Courtney and some live on Shields. We only rate a 2 bedroom and they didn't have any available when we got here so we moved off base. On base housing varies a lot, but it is very industrial looking.
Cell phones, you have AU or Softbank. Most people get Softbank because they want an iphone, we went with AU because it has a better reputation for service and we didn't care about the iphone. Cell service is pretty spotty regardless but it becomes the norm pretty quickly.
All I know about pets is that you need to start that process asap and be prepared to shell out some cash and hit some hiccups with housing. When are you set to get here? A lot of breeds can't fly with summer heat.
Your employment options are going to be pretty slim. There aren't many openings and there are a lot of wives vying for them. PCS season is a good time to be looking.
I'm not an expert but that has been my experience with your questions so far. Good Luck!
You might also be offered housing on McTureous.
:evilgrin: Enjoy The KIM CHEE :beer: :iwo:
I am moving to Oki in about 8-10 weeks. I'll be moving when I'm 5 months pregnant with our first child and I'll be taking our two cats. Lucky for you and I the rules have changed for pets. Originally pets were not allowed in the towers, but they are now. They are cat friendly through out all bases in towers and dog friendly on floors 1 and 2 for towers.
I've gone through almost the whole process for our cats. It's confusing, but if you go to the vet on base they can help you. It's also a lot cheaper if you go to them. My husband and I have save about $500 going to the base vet rather than our civilian one. You can visit Japan's Animal Quarantine Service online (http://www.maff.go.jp/aqs/english/an...ort-other.html) It will take you through step by step what you need to do. long story short you need your pet microchipped with and ISO chip as well as 2 rabies shots, a FAVN test, 40 days advance notice form filled out and faxed to the country of import, along with 180 days of in home quarantine, and than no more than 10 days upon arrival to oki you need to get a health certificate. I suggest getting it no more than 5-7 days before to be safe and to allow for any delays you might run into during traveling. Make sure you have all your originals of the documents for the rabies and FAVN test and such as well as about 5 copies. The base vet is usually really good about all that and helping you get what you need. Just read the webpage I posted and it will explain more in detail as well as just going to the base vet and telling them you need to start the process for going to Oki with a pet. It sounds hard, but it's really not you just have to make sure you have all your ducks in a row when you move with them. I have a friend there who moved with her dog and she said it's sounds much harder than it is and it was a piece of cake in the end. Hope that helped. Don't stress and have panic attacks like I did. I got so stressed over it all that I physically made myself will when we first were trying to figure it out, but it's really not that hard.
Oh one more thing if your pet does not finish it's quarantine in the US. Don't worry they allow them to finish it out in home as long as you live on base in oki you just have to visit the vet once a month I think until it's over.