Army provides easier base access to families of fallen

By Installation Management Command News ReleaseSeptember 2, 2011

WHEELER ARMY AIRFIELD, Hawaii -- Survivors, here, are now able to apply for a survivor decal, much like the standard installation access decal for their vehicle, greatly improving their ability to access the programs designed to support them.

During a Survivor Outreach Services working group meeting last year, several participants expressed difficulty while gaining access to military installations to take part in SOS programs and support services.

Survivors, including parents of fallen Soldiers, do not always have a Department of Defense identification card and are frequently required to get a visitor or temporary vehicle pass to enter installations.

"My intent is to implement access control procedures, making it easier for survivors to enter Army garrisons," said Lt. Gen. Rick Lynch, commander, Installation Management Command. "I want all security personnel manning our entrance gates to recognize these very special Army families and welcome them with special respect for their sacrifice and service."

Garrison SOS support coordinators will work directly with survivors to assist them in the application process, which includes registering with the installation's vehicle registration system.

"An application needs to be filled out, and a background check will be conducted on the individual requesting the survivor decal," said Juan Sponberg, Installation Access officer, Directorate of Emergency Services, U.S. Army Garrison-Hawaii.

Sponberg said individuals can either have a survivor decal or a military (DD Form 2220) vehicle pass, not both.

"The survivor decal may or may not be honored by other … (service) installations, because it is an Army-issued pass," Sponberg said. "The Army will honor it, but other branches are not required to accept it."

Current DOD physical access control policy requires everyone seeking entrance to a military installation to stop at an entrance gate and present government-issued photo identification. Acceptable forms of identification include a state-issued driver's license or state identification card.

Survivors must still follow that policy, but once they have a decal, they will no longer be required to apply for a visitor's pass each time they enter an installation.

The decal is only valid at U.S. Army-Hawaii installations.

--Installation access decal

For more information and to obtain an application, call the SOS Center at (808) 438-9285/1956.

(Editor's Note: Vanessa Lynch, news editor, and William Bradner, IMCOM, contributed to the content of this article.)