AFRC assists Airmen, families with personal finances

Published March 29, 2012
By Scott King
92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. -- The Fairchild Airman & Family Readiness Center has a variety of ways to help people get their personal finances in order - and their doors are always open.

They A&FRC hit the ground running early by briefing newly stationed Airmen at First Term Airman Center with a four-hour block of instruction on basics of money management, budgeting, car buying, investing, credit cards, credit scores and retirement. They also teach students in Airman Leadership School an hour-long block on "How to recognize financial stress in your Airmen." They also brief all single Airmen before they move out of the dorms with a Moving off Base class. This includes briefings on the additional expenses one would likely incur moving off base, and provides one-on-one budget counseling to ensure Airmen are financially capable of handling the increased financial burden. In addition, they offer classes on car buying, home buying and debt reduction and provide one-on-one financial counseling to any military member, dependent or Department of Defense civilian who requests it or is mandated by their first sergeant or supervisor. In emergency situations, they can also provide Air Force Aid Assistance.

"Our resources are here for people to use, they just need to visit us and take advantage of all we offer," said Master Sgt. Scott Woller, 92nd Force Support Squadron A&FRC readiness NCO in charge. "In this rapidly changing economy, it's vital that people keep on top of their finances, not just for their Air Force career, but also their future."

Woller, along with two other accredited financial counselors at the A&FRC, are passionate about helping people with their finances.

"Our passion shows through with all the counseling and financial briefings that we do," Woller said. "We understand how important it is to get out of debt, save for the future and continue serving in the Air Force. We have seen too many Airmen come through our doors who are being discharged for financial mismanagement. Whether for Government Travel Card abuses, Star Card delinquencies or auto repossession, we have seen pretty much every scenario. We don't want that to continue to happen, so we bring a full plate of resources to help."

The A&FRC has seen a few trends over the years, both good and bad.

"A good trend I see, especially with the majority of first term Airmen, is they understand the value of money," Woller said. "I have briefed the FTAC financial class more than 30 times. With each briefing, I ask how many of them know someone who is unemployed. Every time, more than 80 percent of class raises their hands. These young Airmen understand the burdens that are facing them and their fellow Americans - and that's a good thing.

"A bad trend I see is so many Airmen enlisting with thousands of dollars of student loan debt," he said. "I personally have met six young Airmen with $50,000-each in student loan debt, plus countless others who have student loan debt in the thousands. The problem with student loan debt is you cannot discharge it during a bankruptcy, so many of our young Airmen are starting their careers in a deep hole - and that's a bad thing."

For many of these young Airmen, this is the first steady paycheck they have ever seen, so sometimes it is easy for them to get into financial difficulties.

"It's imperative that we do our jobs as supervisors and referral agencies to keep our Airmen on track financially and assist them throughout their careers," Woller said. "Just like almost everything else in life, when it comes to money, people must set goals. If they don't, the money tends to disappear very quickly. This is where we come in - to guide, assist and mentor when and where we can."

A&FRC assists with personal finances