Son leaving soon, more questions

footballmouse

DIS Veteran
Joined
Nov 5, 2008
1. When he flies to GA, will he fly out of a major airport or a military base?
2. His good bye party is in a couple of weeks & people are asking what to get him. I wasn't planning on getting him anything. What would he need? Are they allowed to leave the base on wkends that he might need fast food gift cards?
3. After all his training is done, will he be assigned a base then?
4. How often are they allowed to come home?
5. Are they allowed to wear any kind of holy medals or only their dogtags?

Thanks for your help, he leaves in 3 wks so now I'm thinking of all these questions.
 
Is your son going to Ft. Stewart or Ft. Benning? You can go to Ft. Stewart or Ft. Benning's website for alot of this info and for updates.

Another great website for parents is GoArmyParents.com. It is a discussion board like this and has alot of answers for questions you haven't even thought of yet.

To answer your questions:

Your son will report to the office where he enlisted and they will help him get to the duty station whether it is by flying or bus.

He won't be able to leave post during basic training. There are all kinds of fast food places on post (think the pepsico restaurants like taco bell and kfc). The specific post websites list the restaurants. You can give visa/mastercard gift cards or phone cards when they do receive phone privileges.

After basic training your son will attend AIT (advanced individual training) where he learns his army skills. Depending on the MOS( military occupational skill) he could further skill but should have a clue where he will be stationed and could take leave before he goes to his stationed post after AIT.

I understand they can wear one holy medal attached to dog tags unless things have changed.

A great book for parents of army soldiers is "Your Soldier, Your Army: A Parent's Guide" by Vicki Cody. She is a great resource as an retired army wife and a parent of soldiers.
 
If he is at Benning, most likely they won't let him leave their barracks area, unless they are with their Drill Sgt. He won't be allwed to have anything with him, except what they issue to him, including his cell phone. I hear most saying that they can have stationary. They will be awarded phone calls after the first couple of weeks, so don't expect him to call until then. And I don't believe he will be allowed to come home unless there is a family emergency and that is at the discretion of the Army, such as death of an immediate family member.

The Drill Sgt will take them to one of the AAFEs mini malls to purchase stuff they need, at some point. The mess halls are really nice and the food is good and plentiful, I ate there last month with DH and was really surprised at the quality and quantity of what was offered.

At Benning, there is a movie theater (Carmike), Commissary, Px mall, and several shoppettes scattered around. In the Px mall, there are several fast food places. On Main Post, there is a BK and Taco John's.

Once he is allowed off base, which may not be until closer to graduation and we have a nice large town with lots of places that the soldiers like hang out at. There is also a list of places they aren't allowed to go that will get them kicked out of the Army if they are caught there, so warn him ahead of time. Some soldiers like to see what they can get away with.

If you need any more info on Benning, let me know, I have lived here all my life and I can tell you what's in the area as far as eating/shopping. Ft. Benning has a FB page where they provied info to parents/families, since they won't have phone priviledges at first. Benning MWR is a great resource for everything that is going on on post and what activities are going on. They have a website and a FB page.
 
They can typically now take the Cell phone to basic, so send it with him.
 


Longsx3 said:
They can typically now take the Cell phone to basic, so send it with him.

They will most likely take it and keep it, but that's up to you.
 
My daughters ex boyfriend went to basic last yr at Ft Sill, he was allowed to use it a few different times during training. If you don't send it he absolutely be able to use it.
 
My daughters ex boyfriend went to basic last yr at Ft Sill, he was allowed to use it a few different times during training. If you don't send it he absolutely be able to use it.

I don't know about all of them, but most of the DS at Benning don't allow them and they will confiscate them until the end of Basic. They even post that on their Facebook page that they have for families to follow. They post pictures sometimes and post anything that needs to be reported.
 


I guess the cell phone thing depends on their command. My son is graduating from basic at Ft. Sill this week, and they have had cell phone privileges off and on throughout. Generally earning 30 minutes on Sundays. It is so loud with everyone talking on their phones! They are put up and only handed out to those who have earned privileges.

I thought it was odd that they are allowed to have them at all. And they have a Battery Facebook page, which is updated a couple times a week with photos. Keeping up with the times, I guess.
 
Chim Chiminy: That is exactly how it was for D's ex-bf, the cell phones were taken and then at times they were allowed to use them.

If you have any questions about Ft. Sill feel free to pm me, we have been several times over the past year.
 

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