Grand Forks AFB  Military and Family Support Center

Your Military and Family Support Center provides relocation assistance to help make PCS moves as smooth as possible. Resources include:

• PCS planning: Most relocation assistance programs offer consultations to help you with the moving process. If this your first military move, your first time moving overseas or you have challenging or complex circumstances contact your installation Relocation Assistance Program as soon as possible for support.
• Plan My Move: An online Defense Department relocation tool that provides you with customizable checklists and links to helpful resources for the tasks ahead.
• Military OneSource: A website and call center that offer 24/7 support for moving information and resources. Learn more about PCS basics and download this fact sheet 7 Steps to Make Your Household Goods Move a Smart Move. For comprehensive moving resources and information, including Defense Personal Property log in details, visit Moving Your Personal Property.
• Workshops and briefings: Workshops vary by location. You may find classes on housing options, moving with children, moving with pets and more.
• Predeparture briefings: These sessions provide essential information about your move and may be required for some populations.
• Special needs: If you have a child or family member enrolled in the Exceptional Family Member Program, contact your installation EFMP-Family Support office to assist you.
• Settling-in services: Look for welcome programs or local area tours that may offered. Overseas services may include introductory language classes and cultural awareness activities.
• Foreign-born spouse support: Assistance includes information and referral to resources such as immigration and naturalization.
• Emergency assistance: Sometime emergencies occur while moving. The Military and Family Support Center has the resources to provide emergency financial assistance, as well as information and referrals.
• Authorized housing flexibility options: Eligible service members with PCS orders may be entitled to flexibilities such as extended stays in government housing and early housing eligibility. Contact your military personnel office for more information.
• Spouse licensure reimbursement: Your service branch may reimburse spouses up to $1,000 for relicensure and certification costs resulting from relocations or PCS moves. See this Military OneSource article Transferring Your Professional License for more information and specific service branch policies.

A multitude of resources and services are offered by the Grand Forks AFB Airman and Family Readiness Center and other base agencies to help you make a smooth relocation transition. The Newcomer's Orientation Seminar is offered on the second Thursday of each month at the Northern Lights Club ballroom for all newly assigned military and civilian personnel and their family members (this includes all first-duty station members). This seminar is a great way to find out about living in the North Country. 

The Loan Locker is available with items that will help make your in-bound or out-bound transition a little easier. Some of the items that can be found are: dishes, pots and pans, irons and ironing boards, card tables, silverware, folding chairs, small electrical appliances, and other items for loan while your household goods are in transit. A Fam-pak for a family of four or six is a one-of-a-kind container which can be quickly checked out or you can choose items a-la-cart.

Also provided through the Air Force Aid Society is the permanent change of station child care voucher issued at the A&FRC. The vouchers provide up to 20 hours of free child care per child for the first 60 days after the service member’s arrival.

Other information available to spouses as well as military members and civilian employees are resources for aiding in resume writing, interviewing techniques and applying for scholarships. If more assistance is needed, an A&FRC Community Readiness Consultant is available. The Discovery Resource Center has computers and, for your convenience, the A&FRC is equipped with Wi-Fi for customers using their own smartphones, tablets or laptops. For more detailed information, call the A&FRC at 701-747-3241 or DSN 312-362-3241 and talk to a member of the staff.

The Youth Center has a program called Sponsor Pen Pals in which youth aged seven to 18 who are coming to Grand Forks AFB are sponsored by youth from our base helping make their move/transition easier by sending them a welcome letter and a sponsor kit. A youth sponsorship application can be found on the youth programming webpage.

Installation-Specific Information

For inbound personnel, the A&FRC needs to be one of your first stops upon arrival at Grand Forks AFB. Plenty of area information is available to you from the Relocation Assistance Program (RAP) including local maps, handy phone listings, and information on a variety of places to visit. No matter how well you have planned, emergencies happen. Stay in touch with your sponsor and keep him or her informed of your travel plans.

The RAP consists of a variety of helpful agencies with expertise in helping people relocate. They include housing management, traffic management, legal claims, financial services, military and civilian personnel, a chapel, lodging office, hospital, child development center, youth services, family services, and the A&FRC. The following is a list of some of the services offered by the GFA&FRC:

Installation Voting Assistance Office — The A&FRC is here to assist you with information and resources to ensure you, your eligible family members and overseas citizens are aware of the right to vote and have the tools and resources to successfully do so from anywhere in the world.

The Loan Locker – The Loan Locker is available Monday to Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and should be your first stop when setting up your temporary household while awaiting household goods shipments. Some of the items available to loan include folding tables and chairs, irons and ironing boards, dishes, cooking utensils, toasters, and children’s items such as port-a-cribs. All items are loaned free of charge to military personnel and their families. Bedding, linens, and towels are not provided due to sanitary reasons. Items are issued on a first come, first served basis and can be issued out to members completing a permanent change of station in or out for up to 30 days.

Newcomer's Orientation – Spouses and children are always welcome. The major goal of the orientation is to provide useful information about living in this region. This orientation is part of a Commander Directed Program designed for all inbound military personnel, spouses of military members and civilian employees who recently arrived at Grand Forks AFB. Military personnel and civilian employees for which Grand Forks AFB is their first official duty assignment or Department of Defense employment will receive equal opportunity first duty station training. Information on Grand Forks AFB, the surrounding communities and North Dakota will be available from a variety of presenters during the orientation along with an information fair to help you become an involved airman or guardian during your tour at Grand Forks AFB. The orientation includes a scope of mission tour.

Transition Assistance Program (TAP) – This program assists military members and their families as they prepare to separate from the military. Our RAP office offers a variety of workshops and programs for all separating and/or retiring military members. The pre-separation counseling workshop (DD form 2648) is required for all separating or retiring military members prior to attending the Transition Assistance Program Workshop and no later than 365 days before separation. Contact the A&FRC for additional details.

TAP Workshop – This is a three day, attendance-tracked workshop held every month at the GFAFB A&FRC. Registration is required. Please call the A&FRC for more information. Spouses are welcome to attend on a space-available basis.

Deployment Support – Multiple programs such as Hearts Apart Program and Give Parents A Break initiatives provide support to military families. In addition, the reintegration briefing is a discussion given within days of arrival back to Grand Forks AFB from the deployed location.  

Child Care for PSC – Twenty hours of child care per child is paid by the AFAS for those in all ranks. Certificates are issued by the A&FRC to active-duty service members or spouses on PCS orders and may be used only at the base where it is issued. Child care is authorized at both the departure base and the new base, if the program is available. Certificates must be shown at the time care is provided to verify eligibility. Call your current A&FRC to determine base participation so you don't miss out. A copy of your orders will be needed when signing up for the program. Certificates are good for child care within 60 days of PCS. Child care will be provided only at on-base, licensed family child care facilities. The A&FRC will give you a current list of licensed providers available from which you can choose.

MilitaryINSTALLATIONS, U.S. Department of Defense and Plan My Move – Use these two DOD-sponsored, web-based relocation tools for information on more than 250 installations worldwide. These programs help you manage and plan your move and assist you with a three-month calendar of steps you need to take to ensure a smooth PCS for you and your family. You also have the ability to create a customized calendar specific to you and your family’s needs. See https://installations.militaryonesource.mil/ for more information.