MARINE CORPS AIR GROUND COMBAT CENTER TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif., -- For spouses of staff noncommissioned officers aboard the base who want to do their part to help Combat Center families and the base community, the SNCO Spouses Club may be just what they’re looking for.
The club has been recently reorganized and focused its efforts with the help of new staff leading the way.
“Myself and a few other ladies have gone ahead and are trying to get this to be a fun, new and exciting thing this year,” said Christina Curtin, president of the club who is helping bring it up to full force again. “We are trying to beef up the program and make it better. We are really trying to make this the thriving year that we push things forward.”
The club, which currently has 10 members, is all about giving a helping hand to families aboard the Combat Center, Curtin said.
“Our club is all about our military families,” said Curtin, who hopes to boost membership in coming months. “We put out scholarships for military families, as well as being very involved this past holiday season with the food voucher program through the ASYMCA. We just really want to be involved with our base community here.”
After passing her one-week mark as a member of the club recently, Yvette Jennings said joining was a natural choice.
“I really felt that it was a great organization to join,” said Jennings. “I knew they give out scholarships to military families and also the food vouchers programs over the holidays. I just think it’s a very worthwhile cause and hope to see a lot of people come out and join.”
Joining the club only takes a phone call and a payment of $25 to cover expenses.
Monthly meetings are held at Haskmarks SNCO Club, but the club is planning to have a grand reopening for their building some time this year.
Although still in the planning stages, the club will host a large fundraiser sale next month on a date to be announced.
“Coming up in February we are going to be doing a big fundraiser event sale to start our activities off this year,” said Curtin. “Our last fundraiser was a huge success, and the proceeds of this will go to some of our [family] programs.”
This past holiday season, the club made a significant donation to the Armed Services YMCA food voucher program, which provided support to more than 450 families of Marines and Sailors during the Christmas and Thanksgiving holidays.
“The SNCO Spouses Club was one of the entities aboard the base that stepped forward and made a cash donation that really ensured our young families here were taken care of for the holidays,” said Sgt. Maj. James M. Ricker, Combat Center sergeant major, a club advisor and whose wife, Barbara, is a member.
“I think the biggest thing this club offers is the opportunity to serve the MCAGCC community aboard the base,” said Ricker. “They have a lot of plans and they need a little more membership to get some of these plans to fruition and take it forward. They have some great ideas and they just need some people to help make these ideas come true.”
Although their numbers may seem small now, Curtin said she is confident the group will continue to grow.
“We are looking to broaden our membership this year so we can get more involved within the base community and do some fun activities,” she said. “We are hoping to do some bigger group activities, but right now we’re baby stepping and just working with our upcoming events.
“There are a lot of ideas, but first we have to get the club really going strong,” Curtin continued. “We are certainly carrying things in the right direction, though.”