Soldier and Family Readiness Group

Job Descriptions

Structure:
Battalion level - Commander, Rear Detachment Commander (RDC), Senior Advisor(s), FRG steering committee

Company level - Commander, FRG leaders, Point of Contacts (POCs), family members, and soldiers.

Community Support - Army Community Service (ACS), Family Assistance Center (FAC)

Responsibilities:
Commander - The commander is ultimately responsible for the FRG. They actively sanction the FRG program and officially appoint key military representatives. The commander determines the leadership of the FRG and confirms it in writing.

RDC - The RD is activated when the unit deploys or goes on extended field exercises. The RDC provides a link between families, soldiers, the deployed unit, and community support agencies.
Senior Advisor (a.k.a. FRG Chairperson, Senior FRG leader, or Battalion FRG leader) - The senior advisor is usually the facilitator in the FRG network. They serve as the interface between family members and battalion leadership. They gather information and access resources from the military battalion and community resource agencies, and manage and coordinate the activities of the FRG.

FRG steering committee - The steering committee assists the senior advisor in planning, activating and coordinating FRG readiness. Steering committee members may include, but not necessarily be limited to, company level FRG leaders, newsletter editor, membership coordinator, childcare coordinator, hospitality person, and treasurer.

FRG leader - FRG leaders are responsible for getting the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all married personnel from the company, and organizing the chain of concern (or phone tree). They select POCs who will make phone tree calls to the family members. They communicate with each POC regularly to support the POCs and to ensure that contact within the groups is being maintained. The FRG leader is the POC for the POCs in every respect. They establish and maintain military linkages at the company for exchanging pertinent information with company chain of command.

POC - Initiate and maintain contact with family members on a regular basis to let them know the system is working and disseminate information to the family members.

Family members - Family members are responsible for attending FRG meetings and briefings. They need to inform the FRG leader and/or POC with address and telephone changes. They also need to let the FRG leader and RD know when they leave the area during a deployment or field exercise.
Soldiers - Soldiers are responsible for family readiness, including preparing their families for the soldier's absence during deployments and extended exercises.

Army Community Service - ACS provides services such as relocation assistance, AER loans, consumer affairs and financial assistance, Family Advocacy, employment assistance, etc.

Family Assistance Center - The FAC furnishes information, assistance, guidance, and referral to units and families of soldiers in the event of unit mobilization, deployment, or at times, in response to a major disaster. Some of the organizations that are part of the FAC include ACS, finance, provost marshall, legal, chaplain, housing, transportation, etc.