ABOARD THE USS RUSHMORE -- ABOARD THE USS RUSHMORE (May 3, 2007) – Of all the duties disbursers have, it can be argued there is none more important than getting Marines access to their cash when it is not available to them through standard means.
Sergeant John C. Vroom, 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit finance clerk and Sarasota, Fla. native, flew from USS Bonhomme Richard to USS Rushmore May 6 and 7 to give Marines there the option of “casual pay.”
“Casual pay is an interest-free payday advance that Marines have access to when they can’t retrieve money from their bank accounts via an ATM or the bank itself,” said Vroom. “The Marines sign for the amount they requested, up to $350 monthly, which is taken out of their military pay account the following pay day.”
Unlike the rest of the ships in the Bonhomme Richard Strike Group, the Rushmore is still using cash. This works, as long as cash is always available. When this doesn’t happen, it is necessary for the 13th MEU disbursing office to send a Marine over to the Rushmore to disburse cash.
“I flew over on a CH-46[E Sea Knight] with $27,000 and within six hours of my arrival, it had all been paid out,” said Vroom. “The Marines are definitely appreciative when it comes to getting their money.”
“It’s very helpful for everyday items from the ship store,” said Lance Cpl. Nathan A. Steckert, machine gunner with Lima Company, Battalion Landing Team 3/1, and Bay City, Mich. native. “It’s also nice to be able to send mail and packages home, but you can’t do that without cash.”
“[Casual Pay] helps out a lot because my ATM card quit working and we can’t dial 800 numbers from the phones aboard ship to get them working,” said Cpl. David Treadwell, motor transport operator with Bravo Battery, BLT 3/1. “Also, there are not a lot of Navy Federal Credit Unions at our port calls.”
One thing is for certain, a happy Marine is one that has what he needs when he needs it. When the 13th MEU disbursing office to sent a Marine to USS Rushmore to facilitate the needs of those 125 Marines, there were 125 grateful smiles.