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As part of CityView's commitment to filling gaps by providing reporting and information for the Fort Liberty community, our HomeFront initiative features two columnists who will write regularly about issues military families face.

If your car broke down today, whom would you call?

This can be a tough question for some members of the military community. 

According to the 2020 Military OneSource demographics report, an annual survey published in part by the Dept. of Defense, 43% of active-duty U.S. Army members are single (including divorced, annulled and widowed) with no children, and 5% of active-duty Army members are single with children. (Note: These figures do not account for unmarried service members in long-term domestic partnerships, which are not included in the demographics report.)

Whether they are single or partnered, unmarried service members must rebuild a support system with every move. Cpt. Anna Page, a chaplain and active-duty service member at Fort Liberty, said tasks that would usually be simple for those with partners in close proximity can cause challenges for soldiers without that immediate support. This could also include married and partnered service members who decide to “geo-bach,” or temporarily live in a separate location from their significant other as a “geographic bachelor.”

Though all military families must rebuild a network of support with each move, Page says the challenges unmarried service members face in this effort are often logistical. 

One challenge Page has observed among legally single members is managing assets like a car, home and pets when they are required to deploy, go to the field or leave for a training school for an extended time. 

The second common challenge is child care. Legally single parents must find child care for odd hours and overnights with every move. Some unmarried parents without extended family support must also find trustworthy people at each duty station to include in their Family Care Plan, a required document outlining with whom children will stay upon the member’s deployment or required absence. 

In addition, unmarried service members must find support within a system that often centers married members with spouses and children, overlooking those with other kinds of relational priorities.

Soldier & Family Readiness Groups are supposed to fill these gaps in the Army. Some say SFRGs began during the Revolutionary War as families supported the war effort. These grew into Officer Wives’ and Non-Commissioned Officer Wives’ coffee groups, and then evolved into more formalized entities prior to World War II. 

Eventually expanding to include greater spouse diversity, the first officially documented Family Support Group was established in the 1980s as a means of promoting family well-being during deployments. The first “Guide to Establishing Family Support Groups” was published in 1993 to outline clear roles and responsibilities of these groups within units. 

The U.S. Dept. of Defense changed the name of “Family Readiness Groups” to “Soldier & Family Readiness Groups” in 2019. This was the first large-scale change to the program since the Gulf War. According to the Military Times, the change shifted SFRGs from being a spouse-led program to a commander-led program in order to bring greater alignment and support between family and unit priorities. 

“SFRGs are supposed to be the community that is formed between service members and their families so that there is support felt among all personnel in a unit both at work and their personal lives,” Page said.

“This promotes a more seamless blend of personal and professional so in the case of deployment, communication flows more easily,” Page said, adding that some units may center soldiers more than families, while other units might center families over soldiers. “In the most ideal world, SFRGs create a community [for everyone in the unit] regardless of their marital status or definition of family.”

Each unit is different when it comes to the level of SFRG support. And this is why a strong connection to the surrounding civilian community can be such a gift. There are plenty of opportunities for legally single, geo-baching, married and other active-duty service members to find connection and support in the Fort Liberty area. 

Military life provides the opportunity to build your own “chosen family” of friends, colleagues and others who would have your back if your car broke down. Whatever your relationship status, it is worth it to initiate friendships and support. 
“The more connected we feel, the less likely we are to engage in harmful behaviors, ” Page said. “Connection literally saves lives. The more connected we feel to others, the more joy we have in our lives.”

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Aria Spears joined CityView as a HomeFront columnist in 2023. She is a freelance copywriter, civic leadership enthusiast and current graduate student at Duke University. A Missourian-turned-Army spouse, she loves a good float trip and exploring the Fayetteville–Fort Liberty region with her family and Jack Russell Terrier, Renny.