New Spouse Dashboard

Welcome to the family! Depending on whether you are becoming an active duty family, National Guard or Reserve- the transition into a new culture can feel overwhelming!

The military culture is a different community within the American community and just like any other culture, has customs and family dynamics that you will need to assimilate into.

The biggest thing we want you to remember is that you are not alone! The military family as a whole is a tight knit community and there are many who want to mentor you through the process.

This page, can serve as a dashboard of resources that you can come back to or share at any time as you are getting to know this new family. We hope to give you all the tools you need to succeed and if there is anything we are missing you would like to see, please let us know!

Favorite Training Videos

Military Ball

Customs/Traditions

Acronyms

What is OPSEC?

New Chaplain Spouse

What is a Chaplain?

Welcome from Other Chaplain Spouses

Never Alone (Chaplaincy)

Important Books:

The Army Wife Handbook: A Complete Social Guide 2nd Edition

From Reveille to Retreat: The journey of a lifetime/Editors: Wendy Brzezinski and Karen Bailey,

The Chaplain spouse has a unique position and lifestyle that can be both exciting and challenging. Each spouse enters into a unique and sometimes completely unfamiliar Army culture and is expected automatically to know how to survive, thrive, and be supportive. This can be daunting but, at the same time,is an opportunity to grow and experience a time of adventure and discovery of the world and of oneself.

In From Reveille to Retreat, the Chaplain spouse authors offer you a glimpse into the world of the Chaplain spouse– from walking onto post for the first time to retirement. Through their insightful and poignant sharing, they have brought a wealth of knowledge, information,stories, humor, and sage advice. The Chaplain spouse of the Chaplain Corps have shared their hearts with you.

Mission Ready Marriage: My Life As An Active Duty Wife/ Claire Wood

Our nation has been at war for over a decade. This means many active duty military personnel have been in a constant cycle of training, deployments and reintegration. Unfortunately, the stresses and difficulties of being on the job aren’t only affecting soldiers but also their spouses and family members. These prolonged and significant pressures are taking a devastating toll on many military marriages. As a relatively new active duty military spouse, Claire walks readers through many of the common trials of active duty life. From assignments, relocation, making friends and reinventing yourself at each new duty station, to the painful moments of the deployment and reintegration, Claire shares her personal struggles to make sense of what it means to be a supportive military spouse and do her part to keep her own heart and marriage mission ready.

Sacred Spaces: My Journey to the Heart of Military Marriage/ Corie Weathers

Like many military couples, Corie and her husband, Matt, an Army chaplain, accumulated significant unshared moments during Matt’s deployments. Matt lost friends and fellow soldiers to combat in Afghanistan. On the home front, Corie sat with bereaved military families and walked through dark days with new widows as a friend and professional counselor. When Matt returned, he and Corie began using the term “sacred spaces” for these and other significant moments they had experienced independently. After multiple deployments, sacred spaces were taking up a lot of emotional room in their relationship.