Transition: More than just changing jobs
In my capacity as Vice-President of the Armed Services Mutual Benefit Association (ASMBA), I have had some opportunities to visit with service members out in the field and at various military events including conventions. After we get by the good natured respectful intra-service jabs and sometimes comic exchanges our discussions often focus on the needs of the military member and their families. I would be willing to bet that the following sounds familiar!
When you first became a member of the Armed Forces of the United States, chances are many of you were just out of school, young, ambitious, looking for adventure, and excited about doing great things for your country while seeing the world. You were probably also excited about taking advantage of opportunities to further your education, and you looked forward to enjoying yourself on weekends and your other days off. At that point in your life, you were responsible only to yourself and your unit. Like most of us early in our service careers, you most likely viewed yourself as invincible. You had the world by the tail and nothing could stop you from doing – or achieving – anything you wanted.
During this part of your military career, the need for life insurance was probably far down on your list of considerations. After all, you got up to $400,000 coverage through Servicemembers Group Life Insurance (SGLI) and you didn't have to do anything to get it. SGLI is great coverage, and as long as you're on active duty, you should take full advantage of this remarkable program. It is one of the great programs through which the U. S. Government recognizes the contributions of our military personnel and the sacrifices of their families. It is, simply put, the right thing to do for the men and women who serve in our Armed Forces.
Most likely, little thought was given to the need for long term life insurance until you met and married that special someone, or perhaps faced a sudden deployment into harm's way. Even then, you probably thought the coverage offered by the SGLI program was adequate for a surviving spouse. It is probably safe to guess that at this point in your life you were probably in your early to mid 20's, and you still weren't convinced anything was going to happen to you.
The arrival of your first child probably suddenly awakened in you a new sense of responsibility. For the first time in your life, you probably had serious thoughts about what your family would do in the event of your death. Would they have enough to live on? Would there be enough left over to provide for your children's education? At that time, the SGLI coverage that seemed so much only a few years ago suddenly didn't seem adequate. Even with modest living expenses, it probably wouldn't last more than five years.
As we grow older and our responsibilities as spouses and parents and spouses increase, we gradually reach the point in time when the reality that we won't be in the service forever becomes a fact that we must face. Although that exact point varies between persons, for many it comes as early as the 15 year point in their. By this time, your family has grown to perhaps two or three children and your concerns are focused not just on what happens to them in the event of your death, but on whether you can find suitable employment to support them after you leave the service.
If you're like a lot of active duty personnel, many of the good things that we learned to take for granted over the years will become history when you leave the service, and SGLI is one of them. The amount of your SGLI coverage can be converted to Veterans Group Life Insurance (VGLI), but the cost increase for the same amount of coverage is dramatic - not really good news when you are trying to make the adjustment to a higher cost of living.
Transitioning out of the military is about more than just changing jobs. It also means not having access to the base housing you enjoyed for so many years. It means having to purchase a home, paying state taxes, making co-payments to cover medical expenses, continuing to provide for the increasing needs of the children, putting something aside for their education, and providing assurance that in the event of your death your family can live comfortably and the education of the children will not suffer.
As the children complete their education, find employment of their own and leave home, your immediate life insurance needs will diminish, but there are other things to consider: Illnesses that are associated with aging, the possible need for long-term care that will keep you from becoming a burden to your children, and final expenses associated with your death.
At ASMBA we "been there, done that", consequently, we've designed a wide-variety of programs tailored to your needs for each of the life phases you may experience. You will find that our experienced staff has the flexibility to assist you in meeting your immediate and post-retirement needs. If you call our toll free number 1-800-251-8434, you will be surprised to discover that a real person will pickup the phone ready answer your questions. Or, you can visit our website at asmba.com to learn more about ASMBA. We stand ready to help you because we firmly believe that "we serve a cause greater than ourselves." So...THANK YOU for your service!
