A: To become a Key Volunteer, contact your unit's Battalion Key Volunteer Coordinator or your Family Readiness Officer. You
will be required to participate in standardized training, facilitated by Marine Corps Family Team Building BEFORE being able to
serve in the KVN. You are able to participate in this training even if you choose not to participate in the KVN. Find out more about
classes by calling 725-6637.
Q: How do I contact my Key Volunteer?
A: Call your Battalion Key Volunteer Coordinator, your Battalion Family Readiness Officer or Camp Pendleton Marine Corps
Family Team Building at 760-725-6637. We do not put Key Volunteer names or phone numbers on the web in order to protect
the privacy of our family members.
Q: What do I do if I have an immediate emergency and can not reach my Key Volunteer?
A: If you have an immediate emergency that relates to the health and welfare of an immediate family member, and can not reach a
Key Volunteer, contact the American Red Cross at (760) 725-3303 or (760) 725-6877. The 24 hour HOTLINE is
800-951-5300.
Q: What kind of support can I expect from my Key Volunteer during deployment?
A: Whether or not a unit is deployed, a Key Volunteer is trained to provide information and referral to family members that will
enable them to solve their own problems and overcome challenges common to a military lifestyle. Key Volunteers are trained to be
able to draw on local resources, preserve the confidentiality of the caller, and pass official command information on to family
members. Key Volunteers do not provide the 7 "Bs": Babysitting, Banking, Bus Service, Bed & Breakfast, Baking Services, nor
do they Bring spouses home from deployment. Key Volunteers have NO influence over command decisions.
Q: I haven't heard anything from my Key Volunteer about the deployment but my friends are getting information from their
spouses who are deployed all of the time. Why isn't my Key Volunteer keeping me informed?
A: One of our greatest challenges with the Key Volunteer Network is the Rumor Mill. Spouses may often call or write home with
information that relates to the deployment. However, Key Volunteers can only share information which is passed to them through
the official chain of command to ensure that they are sharing information that is correct and necessary. If you receive information
from sources other than your Key Volunteer, to include from a deployed spouse, that information is considered just rumor until it is
officially provided to the KV network by the command.
