Fort Bragg Exceptional Family Member Program selects committee

FORT BRAGG, N.C. - With a growing population, Fort Bragg has focused its attention to care for a growing Exceptional Family Member population and program. EFM's are any active-duty Family member (adult or child) who has special needs.

Army Regulation 608-75, provides specifications and guidance for how the program should be run. In keeping with those specifications, the program is selecting new members.

The new members will help facilitate quarterly meetings with Col. Jeffrey M. Sanborn, Fort Bragg Garrison commander, tasked with maintaining overall responsibility of the EFMP.

Fort Bragg's current EFM enrollment is more than 5700, said Trisha Newton, EFMP program manager.

Some of the common diagnoses for EFMP enrollment include autism, hearing impairments or deafness, heart conditions, sickle cell disease, epilepsy and diabetes.

Mental health diagnoses for enrollment are anxiety disorder, depression, eating disorder, post traumatic stress disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder.

The new EFMP committee members will come from various sectors of the garrison, such as civilian personnel advisory center, public affairs and staff judge advocate, said Newton. EFMP Families are welcome to attend the quarterly meetings.

Selection to the committee is important because it is the members' role to advise the garrison commander of issues affecting Soldiers and to inform servicemembers of their responsibilities for the care and welfare of their Family members.

In past years, committee members have advocated advances such as having parks built that are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and to helping Families navigate Fort Bragg/community resources available to special needs adult and child, Newton said.

The Exceptional Family Member Program is a mandatory enrollment program dedicated to providing educational workshops, advocacy and recreational activities for the special needs population.

For more information about the program, visit www.fortbraggmwr.com, like Fort Bragg EFMP on Facebook or call 643-6997.