INTRODUCTION

Navy family Ombudsmen have proven to be valuable assets in facilitating communication between commanding officers and family members, fostering a better understanding of the needs and viewpoints of Navy members and their families and providing information and assistance to family members within the command.

The commanding officer selects the command family Ombudsman. The Ombudsman represents and reports directly to the commanding officer and works with the internal chain of command as directed by the commanding officer.

FUNCTIONS OF THE OMBUDSMAN

The Ombudsman is the link between the command and the Navy family. In broad terms, the Navy family is made up of all active-duty Navy members, including single and married service members, their family members, the service member's parents, siblings, and others at the discretion of the Commanding Officer. This is especially true in deploying commands where the Ombudsman is the primary point of contact between the families at home and the command during deployment.