Military
Families soldier through lives on lower incomes
by
GETAHN WARD
Staff Writer
March 3, 2003
For Thompson's Station resident Chuck Horvath, the call to active duty entails not
only personal sacrifice, but also financial. As the Army Reservist prepared to leave
home last week on deployment, the ''to-do'' list included a budget for his wife,
Lisa, a homemaker. The couple face a 50% decline in income - the difference between
his military pay and what he earns on his civilian job as the
information technology
director at Universal Music Group in Nashville. ''It's a huge adjustment,'' said
Horvath, who is on leave from that position. ''We're trying to establish some type
of budget for my wife to live off over the next possible year.'' The Horvaths are
not alone. Going off to war raises financial planning issues for many Reservists
and their families. And civilian employers are caught in the crossfire. Members
of the National Guard and Reserves are paid for training and other requirements
that are fulfilled two days a month, plus two weeks a year. Most hold civilian jobs.
So far, 3,300 Reservists and National Guard members statewide have been called
to active duty. Nationwide, more than 168,000 of a planned 265,000 Reserve group have
been activated.
''Most of the Reservists, quite frankly, never thought they were going to get called,''
said Howard Dvorkin, president of Consolidated Credit Counseling Services, a Florida-based
nonprofit organization. ''It's a sacrifice for the families and even in their careers.''
A helping hand
To cope with budget issues, the Horvaths
are pursuing benefits under federal law that protect deployed Reservists. Among
moves, the couple last week began informing their mortgage and car lenders of Chuck's
active-duty status. The Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act of 1940 requires lenders
to cap at 6% the interest rates on most existing loans during service. Soldiers
also receive protection from eviction if their rent is $1,200 or less, and a delay
of civil court actions including bankruptcy, foreclosure or divorce proceedings.
Horvath expects interest on one of his two mortgage loans to drop by a percentage
point.
The benefits
can be greater, however. Ann Story,
a nurse at Saint Thomas Hospital in Nashville whose husband is on duty in Kuwait,
for example, has seen the interest charged on one credit card decrease from 17%
to 6%. Unlike the Horvaths, Story's family income remains nearly unchanged despite
her husband being only on military pay. But there still are challenges. His paycheck
now comes twice a month vs. weekly before he was activated, she said. ''There's
some budgeting - some rearranging,'' said Story, who helps set up support groups
for families of Reservists.
Another issue for Story involves keeping an ample
amount in the couple's checking account so checks written by her husband in Kuwait to access money don't bounce, she said. Among sources of aid to families facing
financial challenges are programs that include the Army Emergency Relief Fund. The
relief program pays for car repair, utilities, food or other family emergency financial
needs. At the Fort Campbell Army post outside Clarksville, Tenn., financial counselor
Betty Geren has seen an increased demand for assistance and budgeting help, especially
from Reservists and National Guard members. She attributes the rise to more of these soldiers being mobilized compared with 1991 for the Persian Gulf War. Last year
alone, $2.5 million in money from the relief fund was distributed through her Fort
Campbell office, Geren said. ''They're in a world of hurt,'' she said of some Reservists
who face difficulty balancing finances with the decline in pay.
