Active Duty Title 10 Personnel at Independent Duty Stations

Armed Services YMCA DoD Military Initiative for Independent Duty Personnel 

NOTE: The DoD contract with the Private Gyms and YMCAs has been extended for one year until 16 March 2018. You will need to ensure that the visit requirements are still met to be eligible for renewals. An extension of the contract does not constitute as a waiver for not meeting the visit requirements

DoD has contracted with the Armed Services YMCA (ASYMCA) to fund YMCA memberships at participating YMCAs throughout the United States and Puerto Rico for the following groups: 

• Active Duty Personnel at Independent Duty Stations 
• Relocated Spouse of Deployed Active Duty Personnel 
• Deployed National Guard and Reserve Personnel (Army/Navy/Air Force/Marine Corps). Deployment must be for a minimum of 6 months. 
  
  

INDEPENDENT DUTY PERSONNEL ELIGIBILITY:

• Authorized only for those units/duty locations that do not have access to free fitness equipment, commands are not already paying for fitness memberships, and/or have fitness equipment onsite.

•  Federal Active Duty/Active Reserve Title 10 assigned a minimum of ten (10) miles from a military installation offering free fitness facilities (any service)

• Federal Active Duty/Active Reserve Title 10 that do not live on a military installation offering free fitness facilities or within ten (10) miles (any service).

• Approved personnel can choose to use any participating YMCA branch they choose (can only join one). See ymca.net for participating branches. Memberships are purchased for the service member as a single membership in accordance with the federal law. The YMCA is allowing approved service members to bring their families at no additional cost to the service member.
• All service members in the unit/location requesting a private gym MUST go to the same gym/same location/same branch. Family members will NOT be authorized to utilize this membership as it will only be for the service member.

 * Unit/Duty Location Approval by the Army Service POC must be received PRIOR to registering at the YMCA or Private Gym

 
Forms:

Request for Independent Duty Personnel

"How to Fill out" Request for Independent Duty Personnel

Thank You Letter

Fitness Log for TDY/TAD Travels

In Addition:

The Department of Defense will buy down memberships, to a local Fitness facility (e.g. Gold’s Gym/24 Hour Fitness, etc) for Federal Active Duty Title 10 Personnel at approved Independent Duty locations. Memberships at Private Gyms will only be for the service members. In accordance with the federal law memberships are purchased for the approved service members and family members will NOT be allowed to utilize their single person membership.

Respite Child Care – Children up to age 12 of deployed Guard and Reserve personnel, relocating spouse and Independent Duty Personnel will be authorized free respite child care up to 16 hours per month, per child in participating YMCAs in all states with licensed and certified childcare. All 50 states have now been approved – they will just have to sign up. 

Approved Respite Care Locations

PROCEDURES FOR REQUESTING

 
YMCA Membership Requests: 

1. Fill out the Request for Independent Duty Personnel. This is a unit approval not an individual approval. Everyone who is eligible and interested in participating must have their names on one request. Once the unit/duty location is approved, all eligible personnel at the duty location can join any participating YMCA. Have the COMMANDER OR OFFICER IN CHARGE SIGN THE REQUEST (Must be at least an E-7). Unit Administrator signatures will NOT be accepted. Provide Unit POC information on the form (someone within the unit).
2. Eligible personnel are those Federal Active Duty Title 10 that are assigned to the unit/duty location a minimum of six (6) months and able to meet the minimum visit requirements of eight (8) calendar days per month.
3. Submit one copy of one person’s orders (non-expired) with the SSN blanked out
4. Send the Request for Independent Duty Personnel and orders for approval by the Army Service POC prior to registering at the YMCA or Private Gym: 
         

Private Fitness Facility Requests:

When selecting a private gym, make sure they allow six (6) month memberships and everyone understands that the registration/joining fee and any monthly fee exceeding $50/mo will be the responsibility of the service member. Private memberships are also ONLY for the service members, families will NOT be allowed to utilize the memberships. All service members in the unit/location requesting a private gym MUST go to the same gym/same location/branch. The private gym memberships are purchased in advance of servicemembers registering, so please make sure that whoever is on the request is serious about utilizing it. We are wasting a lot of money on memberships at private gyms for people that are not showing up or using it at all.

1. Fill out the Request for Independent Duty Personnel. This is a unit/duty location approval not an individual approval. Everyone who is eligible and interested in participating must have their names on one request. Once the unit/duty location is approved, all eligible personnel at the duty location can join. Have the COMMANDER OR OFFICER IN CHARGE SIGN THE REQUEST (Must be at least an E-7). Unit Administrator signatures will NOT be accepted. Provide Unit POC information on the form (someone within the unit). * Family members are NOT eligible under this option. 
2. Provide the name/address/phone number/POC for the private gym of choice
3. Eligible personnel are those Federal Active Duty Title 10 that are assigned to the unit a minimum of six (6) months and able to meet the minimum visit requirements of eight (8) calendar days per month.
4. Submit one copy of one person’s orders (non-expired) with the SSN blanked out
5. Send the Request for Independent Duty Personnel and orders to:  usarmy.jbsa.imcom-hq.mbx.army-ymca@mail.mil  or  for Recruiters:   Usarmy.knox.usarec.mbx.g1-ymca-fitness@mail.mil

Once the unit is approved, the ASYMCA POC will contact the gym on the request form. The memberships have to be purchased in advance of the personnel registering, please make sure that whoever is on the list is serious about utilizing it. We are wasting a lot of money on memberships at private gyms for people that are not showing up or using it at all. Please have the military members wait until those arrangements have been made, and confirmed by the ASYMCA, before participating under this program.  The military member will be responsible for all charges with the private facility until the ASYMCA has completed the membership contract arrangements.  This is NOT a reimbursement program and charges incurred before final confirmation of membership is received will not be reimbursed to the individual or paid to the private fitness facility.

The membership must log a minimum of eight (8) calendar day visits per month at YMCAs and Private Fitness Facilities. A visit is defined as : the soldier comes into the YMCA scans their card for that day’s workout. That is one (1) visit for that calendar day.  Multiple swipes by that participate or family members does not constitute multiple visits in 1 day. For attendance purpose all visits in  one (1) day are counted only once.  If the aggregate total of visits (a total of all of the family members at YMCAs) does not meet this requirement, then the membership will not be renewed at the six (6) month mark. 

THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER! 

Once you are denied renewal due to lack of usage, there is NO process to reinstate your membership at your present OR FUTURE duty locations. Your participation in this initiative will be terminated. New duty locations will NOT restart your participation. 

It is the Commander's responsibility to ensure Soldier's are meeting the visit requirements,  NOT the YMCA's responsibility to notify Soldier's when they are not meeting the requirements. 

The A.W.A.Y. program (Always Welcome at YMCAs) is based on the philosophy that when a person enrolls in a YMCA, he or she becomes a member of a nationwide association, and, therefore, when away from home, on business or vacation, will be warmly welcomed by all other participating YMCAs in the United States. A YMCA's participation in the A.W.A.Y. program is voluntary, and some restrictions may apply. Check with the your YMCA Branch to see what they allow. 

To find information on any YMCA in the United States, go to www.ymca.net, and conduct a "Find Your YMCA" search. YMCAs participating in the A.W.A.Y. program are noted. 



Travel Log: (YMCA) 

In the event you are sent TDY due to Military Assignments, use the “Fitness Log for TDY/TAD Travels” link above to record your visits at a YMCA that is participating in the DoD Military Outreach Program. You must attach a copy of orders showing the TDY dates. It is your responsibility to present this completed log upon your return to your home YMCA location for your visits to be applied toward the minimum monthly eight( 8) visits, as required by the DoD Military Outreach Program. 

This Fitness Log must have the visiting YMCA's stamp by the proper date in order for the visit to be counted toward your attendance at your home branch. Your home YMCA will retain this Fitness Log and TDY Orders in your file, so they can submit at renewal time. 

If this log is not completed then these visits will not be recorded at your home YMCA location, and the service member risks having his/her membership cancelled at the 6-month renewal period. 



Travel Log: (Private Fitness Facility) 

Although the usage requirements are the same, Private Fitness Facility memberships are not eligible to use this Fitness Log for recording TDY travel visits. The service member must log the required number of visits at the Host Gym identified in the IDP. The service member is encouraged to notify their gym and see if there is a sister gym they could use or have the Host Gym block those dates on the membership (most gyms do). The ASYMCA POC will require documentation of the TDY dates upon renewal time. 


RENEWALS
 
Renewal Process (YMCA):
Once you receive your unit/location request, approval by the Army Service POC is not required for renewals.

The local YMCA branch will be in touch with the commander to verify the list of registered personnel and who is eligible for renewal based on number of calendar day visits (minimum of eight (8) per month, still on federal active duty title 10 status for a minimum of six (6)month more, still assigned to the unit for a minimum six (6) months and able to meet the visit requirements. Please give each Soldier a copy of the ORIGINAL signed approval and "re-register" by filling out another YMCA/DoD Eligibility Form and the  "Thank You" letter. If you have personnel who knowingly will not be able to fulfill the requirements please do not renew them at that time so we don't waste money on a membership that will not be used.

If the YMCA Branch you join is part of the "Away Program", you can utilize other branches while you travel on TDY or leisure (see your branch for guidelines). Please have the YMCA branch you visit fill out the “Fitness Log for TDY/TAD Travels” form and provide it to the YMCA Branch  you joined along with your TDY orders to be included in your total visit counts.

Renewal Process (Private Fitness Facility): 

 
In order to have your membership renewed to your club you need to email/ scan/ fax the following information to the ASYMCA POC listed below 30 days prior to the expiration. If the ASYMCA POC does not receive this information within that timeframe, then your unit’s membership will not be renewed for an additional six (6) months. 
 

1. Already approved IDP (ORIGINAL) and memorandum requesting a renewal. 
2. Attendance Reports for the six (6) months on gym letter head - individual scan entries are required not an overall number from the gym. Please send together with the IDP and memorandum

Each service member will need to attend the Private Fitness Center a minimum of 8 calendar days per month. This information needs to be sent to you from the gym for verification of usage. IF your service member has not attended a minimum of 8 calendar days per month then the membership will not be renewed. When submitting the request for renewals, only submit the names of service members who qualify for renewal (meet eligibility and visit requirements)>

If the ASYMCA does not receive a request for renewal then they will not know who does and does not want to continue their memberships at the specific fitness center location. Should they not receive the request in a timely manner, the service member may be responsible for membership fees until the membership is renegotiated.  

ASYMCA Private Gym Renewal POC: 

Fax: (703) 455-2181

dodpf@asymca.org
www.asymca.org
 
 

Additions to your Unit’s memberships: 

There is an easy process for additions to both a YMCA and a Private Fitness Facility request.All S ldiers being added must be Federal Active Duty Title 10 status with a minimum of six (6) months left at the unit/duty station and able to meet the visit requirements for the next six (6) months. 

If you have someone new to the Unit after the IDP has been submitted:  
 
For YMCAs: Once you receive your unit/location approval additions/deletions from the Army Service POC is not required. Write an addendum memo on letterhead signed by the Commander to the local YMCA Branch asking for names to be added to already approved list. Soldiers must meet eligibility requirements. Have each Soldiers take the ORIGINAL approval along with the memo, "Thank You" letter, orders and ID card to the local YMCA and register. Please have Soldiers who leave early unexpectedly cancel their memberships so we are not wasting funds. Non-cancelled memberships could also prohibit the Soldier from joining at the new duty location (if approved) due to lack of usage. If you have a change in Command Fitness POC or commander, please inform the YMCA for a smooth transition.
 

For Private Fitness:  

1. Have the Unit’s Command Fitness POC and/or CO/OIC write a memorandum on letterhead with the person(s) Rank, Name, and date of addition to Unit. The CO/OIC will sign the memo and attach it to the ORIGINAL Unit Approval. 
2. Email the Memorandum and the ORIGINAL Unit Approval to the ASYMCA POC so they can contact the Fitness Facility and have the person added to the membership. Please have the military members wait until those arrangements have been made, and confirmed by the ASYMCA, before participating under this program.  The military member will be responsible for all charges with the private facility until the ASYMCA has completed the membership contract arrangements.  
3. MUST attend the same private gym as the ORIGINAL unit approval

ASYMCA Adding Names POC: 
Fax: (703) 455-2181
dodpf@asymca.org
www.asymca.org