Some of the best information you'll receive on your move will come from your sponsor's personal experiences. Reach out to your sponsor for resources. Start the conversation with your sponsor and include the following topics and questions:
What should I tell my sponsor?
Help your sponsor out by providing information about you and your family's relocation needs and concerns. This information allows your sponsor to target resources and information to suit your needs. Tell your sponsor specific information including the following:
- Family — Family members and their ages, pets
- Medical — Family member special needs (to gain access to program resources)
- Education — Individualized education program, elementary schools through college needs
- Employment — Partner, teen or other dependent seeking employment and type of job
- Housing — Preferences based on family size, household goods, hobbies and lifestyle
- Initial needs — Temporary housing upon arrival, child care, transportation
- Arrival — Date and time of your arrival, where you will arrive and how (plane, car, train, bus)
What should I ask my sponsor?
You may already have a list of questions for your sponsor after researching the new duty station on the MilitaryINSTALLATIONS website. If not, you can start with asking questions about the following topics to get the conversation going.
- Local area and installation — Fun activities, sports, favorite places, employment opportunities, schools, child care, medical, contact information for all services or programs you may need
- Temporary lodging — Types of lodging, when and how to make reservations, what restaurants or facilities are close to the available options, recommendations and why they recommend it
- Housing options — Available options, when and how to start finding housing, discuss your preferences, ask for recommendations and why they recommend it
- Overseas — Host country information: culture, language training, driving regulations and licensing, currency exchange, cost of living, climate; what you should or should not bring
- Arrival — Coordinate your meeting on arrival, transportation, temporary housing, ask your sponsor for a tour around the installation and surrounding area in the first day or two
After you've asked all the questions you can think of, ask these clean-up questions:
- What do you wish you'd known before the move?
- What was the best advice you received before your move?
- What do you miss the most that you can't get at the installation and surrounding area?
- What do you love the most about this installation and local area?
- Is there something you wish you'd have purchased or brought with you?
- Is there anything you wish you'd left in storage?
Keep the lines of communication open with your sponsor. They are a great resource for relocation planning and insider information on your new installation and surrounding areas. If you still have questions that your sponsor couldn't answer, visit or call Military OneSource at 800-342-9647.