When it comes to deployment, relying on unit volunteers alone to make sure families are getting the support they need just doesn’t work. It’s too much for volunteers already stressed by their own slice of the deployment pie to handle all the moving parts of staying in contact with all the families, organizing support functions and making sure everyone has all the information they need.
Enter the Army’s Family Readiness Support Assistant (FRSA) program. It is the job of this paid employee (one in each deployed battalion) to make sure that all the pieces of family support fit together smoothly. Often filled by a fellow spouse, this position has a unique view of the challenges and mistakes made by families through all the stages of deployment.
Hilary Keatts, an Army spouse, is a former FRSA. In our short video interview this week she shares some of the deployment secrets and pitfalls she learned during her time on the job.
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