Yellow Ribbon Program changes announced

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Stephanie Blevins
  • 445th Airlift Wing Yellow Ribbon Representative

This has been an unusual year for all to include the Yellow Ribbon Program. Before I discuss changes, I want to give you a brief background on the Yellow Ribbon Program.

The Yellow Ribbon Program is designed to help educate Airmen, families and friends on potential and immediate problems while providing you with resources that you may not have been aware are available to you. Overall, the program prepares you and your family for deployment as well as reintegrating you when you return. These events typically occur every month on a Friday through Sunday.

You and your guests are put on orders to attend the event. Flights are booked centrally at no cost to the guest. Meals are reimbursed up to the allotted amount depending on location. The hotel is reimbursed for the event dates through your voucher submittal.

As a pre-deployer, you are eligible to attend one event 120 days prior to your deployment orders beginning. As a post-deployer, you are eligible for one year after your deployment order ends to attend two events.

Yellow Ribbon changes

Eligibility changes: All Air Force Reservists who have been called to active duty in support of a deployment (active duty tour supporting contingency operations, deployment (i.e., theater security operations, humanitarian missions, Chairman Joint Chief of Staff exercises (CJCS) orders) for 90 days or an accumulation of 90 days or more during a 24-month period, resulting in 50 percent or more separation from their support systems. If you need help determining if you are eligible, please email me.

Pre-deployers:  As we progress through 2020, we have looked into conducting virtual events for pre-deployers. If you would be interested in attending a virtual event, please let me know, and I can work on setting this up while coordinating with other bases. You still must be within your eligibility window of 120 days prior to your deployment order beginning.

Post-deployers: There is a waiver in place for all post-deployers to have the opportunity to attend their two events past the one year requirement. If you were eligible to attend an event in March of 2020, you are eligible for a waiver. If you aren’t sure if you were eligible you can reach out to me.  

The year ahead is still unpredictable. We are planning for November and December events in Orlando, Florida in hopes that we do not have to cancel.

In the meantime, if there are resources that you need help connecting with, please do not hesitate to reach out to me and I will do my best to help connect you.  I can be reached at stephanie.blevins@us.af.mil.