Can we get food stamps, even though my husband is in the military???

Question

O.K. we have hit some hard times recently, I don't want to tell you all my business but my husband is a Lance Corporal in the Marine Corp. We have a 10 month old son, but I'm afraid I may be pregnant again- even though we use condoms :( Anyway we are having a really hard. I was wondering if we could get food stamps.

P.S. I can't get a job because my husband works weird hours.

Answer 1

Have you tried the Navy Relief society yet?

Answer 2

There are places on base (not sure which particular USMC base you're on) where you can work part time. if need be you can ask an employer to stay flexible with your schedule because your husband is a Marine. There's also base child care you could check out. I'm the daughter of former old timer Marine so as far as how the military day care works, i'm not sure if you have to pay for it or not, but if you haven't looked into it, try to. And for the rude answer above about day care... you can stick it where the sun doesn't visit.

As far as food stamps, I think that as a Lcpl. he might make just the right amount for you to qualify. Call the office where they do applications for food stamps and ask them what their income qualifications are. Keep in mind that even though he may fall under the income qualifications and it may SEEM you're qualified, the fact is that the military provides you with a roof over your head so that will work against you, because what money you ARE getting is not spent on housing.

You do however most likely (i'm 99% sure) qualify for WIC (women, infants & children) which is a program which provides families with low income the means to buy milk, bread, formula, eggs, cereal and nutritious things for your baby. It's not like food stamps, the list of things you can buy on WIC is extremely picky... like you're limited to the size of box of cereal I believe if I remember correctly from my days as a cashier.

Hope things get better and this info helps :o)

Edit to add: WIC is good until your youngest child is 5.

Btw, thank you husband for me, and thank you too for standing behind a man that chooses to serve for his country, it's a hard life I know and only a special type of woman can do it. Hang in there hun.

Answer 3

To the poster who said 'day care"...day care for two infants would most likely eat up the majority of what she could earn. The truth is, even for military wives with marketable skills, it is tough to work full time and nearly impossible to do part time if your spouse doesn't have a set schedule of days.

As for food stamps...it is possible and you should definitely qualify for WIC, even with just the one child. The first place to go is the family support center on base. They can tell you where to go to sign up for WIC...many bases have an office on post and this will give you milk, some staples and produce for your older child and formula and other items for the new baby. It can be a huge help..especially if you do not nurse. Family support should also be able to give you information on food stamps for your area. Things have changed a lot. When we had our first child, military in our area were not eligable period. By the time we had our second baby, we had moved overseas and WIC had not gone there yet. Now WIC is on every base worldwide..huge help!

You should also talk to your base aide office. Navy Relief, Air Force Aide...all branches have one. They may be able to give you some food vouchers to help get you through for now. They also have classes or workshops on budgetting, often have coupon swap boxes, and other ideas on how to make ends meet. If you are not living on base, you may want to consider applying to move on post, especially if you will need a bigger place with the second baby. Living on post will mean loosing your housing allowance, but will also mean no utilities to pay, lower commuting costs and being closer to base facilities like the commisary, PX and medical. It also means you will be around other military wives and families...and if anyone can give suggestions on how to make the check stretch it is other people in the same place and position.

People don't realize how little money newly enlisted make. It is tough to make ends meet at times, even for folks further up the pay chart. Don't feel embarassed or worried about going to the people on base to get help...they have heard it before and are there to help.

Answer 4

you should qualify...depends on your states guidelines....sadly my husband is a 9 year E5 and we have 2 children and i checked one day out of curiosity and we qualify for almost $400 a month foodstamps in the state of virginia. as for the poster with the rude comment about daycare......first of all when you have a husband who is in the military and works odd hours and could be deployed at any time ..its really hard to find a decent paying job that will be flexible with a schedule.....also although daycare on base is based on income at times there are long waiting lists.....and she is talking about 2 children under 2.....which is the max number that a home provider can keep at a time so she would have to find one that had no infants already or split her kids up 2 different places. now, take that into consideration and then think about buying work clothes, upkeep and maintanance on a second car, etc. oh and btw...most new jobs you dont get a check for 2-3 weeks and you have to pay upfront for daycare.....the poor girl cant afford to buy food right now but you want her to come up with several hundred dollars for daycare?

Answer 5

Yes, military families qualify for food stamps based on income just like non-military families. As a veteran, and supervisor of junior Navy personnel it was especially disturbing to see military families struggling to make ends meet while sacrificing to serve thier country. This is especially true near cities with higher costs of living.

It sometimes appears that the government or military stance is one of embarrassment that military families would need this assistance. However, I say do what you need to do to take care of your family. If that means food stamps & WIC to help feed your little ones than so be it. Also, don't buy in to the two income mentality. It oftentimes costs a family more to run 2 vehicles, two working wardrobes, daycare expenses for 2 or more children, and the extra expense of convenience foods due to work schedules. Your value to the family might be in caring for your husband and children at this time, and it may also be ultimately more rewarding.

Also, thank you for being a military spouse. And please thank your husband for his willingness to serve our country!

Answer 6

You need to go to your local Government Office, where you can get food stamps and I guess you need to show them the income paper from your husband. Also for your child you get the WIC Program, this can be made also in the same office.
Wic Program is: you get eggs, milk, juice, cereals for your child (free).

Answer 7

I think you should go seek helps from your hubby's base, there are org that help our military spouses while hubbies are on mission and stuff. Don't need to get food stamp. It don't sound right about your whole story though

Answer 8

Yes, you should be able to qualify for food stamps and WIC.

What a shame that we can't take care of Military families any better than this.






g-day!

Answer 9

Yes, you can. I have known a few Army guys collecting food stamps. Bottom line, tough times are tough times, military or not.

You are also entitled to WIC as well.

Answer 10

his status as a Marine has no bearing on whether or not you qualify..only your income and what the state guidelines are do.

and yes, you can use on base day care as well as in home day care.. its a sliding scale based on pay grade.