Military Deployment

Deployment means leaving your family and your affairs to function on their own, often for months, and preparing for the small chance that something happens to you. Getting your documents and plans in order before you ship out is part of the job, and it lets you serve with your mind on the mission, not on what’s unsettled at home. And like every milestone, it’s not just the deployment, it’s all the stuff attached to it. And remember, every path is unique; these are suggestions, not advice.

Put your core documents in place before you ship out

• These are the essentials, handle them before deployment, while there’s time.
• Create or update your Will, so your wishes are clear no matter what.
• Set up a Power of Attorney, general or specific, so your spouse or a trusted person can handle finances, housing, and obligations while you’re gone. This is what keeps life at home running without you.
• Set up a Health Care Proxy so someone can make medical decisions for you if you’re hurt and can’t.
• Your installation’s military legal assistance (JAG) office can prepare these at no cost, take advantage of it.

Build your Family Care Plan

• If you have children or dependents, a Family Care Plan spells out who cares for them and how, and it’s required for many service members, your command and legal assistance can help you build it.
• Make sure caregivers have the authority and information they need: medical consent, school details, routines, and finances.
• Confirm childcare, guardianship arrangements, and backup plans are solid and in writing.
• Don’t forget your pets, arrange who’ll care for them for the length of the deployment, leave clear instructions and vet information, and consider a Pet Power of Attorney so your caregiver can authorize care. See Getting a New Pet.

Get your family’s finances deployment-ready

• Set up bill payment and household finances so they run automatically or through your POA while you’re away.
• Review your life insurance, SGLI through the service, and any supplemental coverage, and confirm your beneficiaries are current.
• Make sure your family knows how to access accounts, benefits, and support while you’re deployed.

Organize everything in one reachable place

• Store your orders, IDs, Will, POA, insurance, and Family Care Plan in a Gentreo Digital Vault, so your family can reach what they need without you there to find it.
• Make sure your spouse or designated person knows it exists and how to access it.

Know the support that’s there

• Military legal assistance, family-support organizations, and the VA offer real help for deployment readiness and for families while you’re gone.
• If the worst happens, survivor-benefits guidance helps your family access what they’re entitled to, knowing it exists is part of being prepared.

You’ve got enough to carry into a deployment. Get your documents and your Family Care Plan set, make sure your family can reach everything, and Gentreo helps keep it all organized while you serve.

More serving. Less worrying about home.

Gentreo is not a law firm or a substitute for a law firm or attorney or an attorney’s advice. Gentreo provides self-help services at your specific direction.