74 Washington Ave N
Battle Creek, MI 49037-3084
Welcome to Battle Creek
Michigan
Home of the Hart-Dole-Inouye
(HDI) Federal Center
Welcome! My name is Trena
Philo, the Relocation
Assistance Manager (RAM) for
the Hart-Dole-Inouye Federal
Center. Congratulations on
your assignment to Battle
Creek, Michigan. The
Relocation Assistance
Program (RAP) provides
personnel a point-of-contact
for questions that may come
up before, during and after
a move. The Relocation
Assistance Program is for
both civilian and military
personnel. This office, in
collaboration with the
applicable unit First
Sergeant or sponsor, will
assist any military member
or government employee in
the area.
The relocation services
provided to the military and
civilian community are to
keep the community informed
on destination area
information such as housing,
child care, spouse
employment, cultural
adaptation, and community
orientation. The Relocation
Assistance Program (RAP)
helps civilian, military
members and families
understand and manage the
emotional impact of frequent
moves. The goal is to
update everyone on what is
available on the web and the
resources available to
assist the future
Hart-Dole-Inouye Federal
Center community, as well as
information for the existing
community.
We are all aware that
Congress has directed DoD
and each branch of the
military to downsize. There
are several force reduction
initiatives in progress,
resulting in a reduced
full-time workforce, and
often the relocation of
those remaining. There are
new tools to help with the
relocation transition. Two
of the resources are the
web-based
Military OneSource and
Military HomeFront.
Military
OneSource is provided by the
Department of Defense at no
cost to active duty, Guard
and Reserve (regardless of
activation status) and their
families. It is a virtual
extension of installation
services. Visit Military
OneSource today at
www.militaryonesource.com
or call 1-800-342-9647.
MilitaryHOMEFRONT is the
official source information
for all DoD Quality of Life
programs and services for
Service members and their
families, military leaders
and service providers.
There are tools on Military
OneSource and Military
HomeFront that will provide
the client with everything
needed to know about a
Permanent Change of Station
(PCS). These tools are as
follows:
1.
Military
HOMEFRONT has several
tools available on the “Moving
and Relocation Home
Page”, to include:
a.
Benefits and Allowances - Frequently
Asked Questions about moving benefits and
allowances with links to all the official
DoD websites, such as the Per Diem
Committee, Defense Finance Accounting
Service, and other important websites.
Benefits and allowances change frequently,
so it is always best to go to the official
websites for the most up-to-date
information. There is also a difference
between uniformed military allowances and
benefits and those of the DoD civilians.
The Per Diem committee website addresses
both groups.
b.
Installation
Overview.
Military HOMEFRONT's Military Installations
tool contains information on more than 250
military installations worldwide, including
55 directories of programs and services
available on the installations. New to
Military Installations is a link to the
Department of State’s worldwide directory,
and the State pages.
c. 
Military
HOMEFRONT's Moving 101
is a guide especially for first time movers
that explains what to expect and who to
contact upon receipt of the first PCS
orders.
d.
Relocation Budget Planner helps the
mover establish a relocation budget plan
with an Excel spreadsheet that can be saved
to your computer, currency converter, a link
to the IRS to determine what receipts to
keep, and links to other DoD official sites.
e.
Resources provides links to Military
HomeFronts Plan My Move, Military HomeFronts
Military Installations, and Military
OneSource.
i.
Support Services provides links to the
military services and their specific support
services.
ii.
Additional Resources provides links to
other services, such as the Automated
Housing Referral Network (AHRN), Defense
Finance Accounting Service (DFAS), Military
Surface Deployment and Distribution Command
(SDDC), Military Youth on the Move, and the
Per Diem, Travel and Transportation
Allowance Committee.
f.
Frequently Asked Questions
g. And
a
Glossary!
2. 
Military
HOMEFRONT's Plan My Move
provides information about entitlements
and benefits, points of contact,
checklists, planning tools, education,
and employment.
3. 
The Military OneSource's Relocation
Essentials helps to compare
communities throughout the United States
by using several features: Cost of
Living Reports, School Report Cards,
Community comparisons, a Salary
Analyzer, Crime and Safety Reports,
Community Explorer, and calculators.
In conjunction with the Military
OneSource tools, the local
Relocation Assistance Program
internet website provides many local
resources and information, such as child
care, education, employment assistance,
hospitals, military specific
information, movers, real estate and
rental, regional links, miscellaneous
resources, TRICARE, utilities, vehicle
and transportation, and relocation
specific information. Please feel free
to print off any of the materials that
interest you and your family. This
information will not be included in the
welcome package. If you do not have
access to a computer, please let me
know. I will gladly print off the
materials for you and include them in
your welcome package.
Upon notification of your upcoming
arrival, I will send you information
about Battle Creek and other surrounding
communities. If I can be of any
assistance during your transition or in
the future, please call me commercial
(269) 961-7385, (DSN) 661-7385 or visit
my office at the Hart-Dole-Inouye
Federal Center, Building 1, Floor 1,
Room 7. You may also contact me at my
Email address
Trena.Philo@dla.mil or send a fax to
commercial (269) 961-4523, (DSN
661-4523).
I look forward to meeting
you and personally welcoming you to the
Hart-Dole-Inouye Federal Center!
Sincerely,
Trena
S. Philo
Relocation Assistance Manager (RAM)
TRICARE Assistance Manager
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