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CoverStory:
BBB Military LineŽ 
Protecting The
Wallet of
Those Who Protect Us By
Roy Asfar,
Special to Veterans Advantage
The war facing our
nation brings unique challenges for military
families at home
just as they do for their loved ones fighting
to defend our freedoms abroad. Thankfully, some
inspired and committed public servants have forged
a unique collaboration between business and the
military – helping
to protect the financial health and long-term
quality of life for those who serve.
The Better Business
Bureau’s BBB Military
Line program (bbb.org/military),
a 2003 initiative of the nearly 100-year-old BBB,
has the recognition and support of all branches
of the U.S. military to improve the financial health
and knowledge of military consumers through its
network across the country. During these challenging
times -- war coupled with economic uncertainty
-- these services are especially meaningful for
our armed forces.
“It’s a time when there is a lot of
stress on military families,” said Holly
Petraeus, Director of BBB Military Line, and one
of the program’s first supporters. “Financial
problems are a big stressor, and deployment increases
financial issues.”
BBB Military Line’s origins trace back to
the start of the Global War on Terror, and the
BBB in Nashville, Tennessee. The CEO of the Nashville
BBB felt strongly that surrounding communities
should come together to support the families of
the 101st Airborne Division at Ft. Campbell, Kentucky. This
support was particularly welcome when the Division
was almost entirely deployed to Iraq under the
leadership of Holly Petraeus’ husband, (then)
Major General David Petraeus.
“Because he [Gen. Petraeus] and pretty much
all the soldiers were gone, I took a fairly public
role and got to know a lot of the legislators and
business leaders,” Petraeus recalls of her
relationship with the Nashville BBB, which included
supporting their plans to grow the initial effort
into a national program.
BBB’s national leadership was enthusiastic
about the idea, and it wasn’t long before
the Army and the DoD embraced the program (later
followed by all branches of the U.S. military).
The CEO of the Council of Better Business Bureaus
at the time, Ken Hunter, who had three sons in
the military, saw the importance of bringing the
expertise of the BBB system to the assistance of
military personnel and their families. Hunter then
tapped Petraeus to steer the Military Line program. “It
took me by surprise. In the end, [I was] pretty
pleased to accept.”
The appointment was a great
fit. Growing up in a military family (her father
was Superintendent of West Point), serving as a
military spouse for 33 years and as a Department
of the Army civilian employee, Petraeus had extensive
experience as a volunteer leader in military family
programs. In that role, she has worked with local,
state and national legislators to address a wide
range of issues affecting Army families. She has
testified at two U.S. Senate hearings on deployment-related
issues.
Today for Petraeus, it’s all about ensuring
high quality and ethical business practices. Not
only is she identifying scams and predatory sales
practices that victimize the military, but her
mission also promotes accreditation of businesses,
offering a trustworthy roadmap of companies that
are doing it right.
“If you see a BBB Accredited Business,” she
says, “it meets a pretty strict code of standards.”
Our high tech society
has also created new challenges for military
personnel and their families in the 21st century.
ID theft is a major concern, especially since
the military uses the Social Security Number
on ID cards and records as a personal identifier.
According to Petraeus, research suggests that over
half of ID theft cases nationwide occur when the
thief has direct contact with the victim’s
personal information, such as by rifling through
personal records, a stolen or lost wallet, a mailbox,
or trash. As a consequence, BBB Military Line is
educating military members about ways they can
protect themselves and their personal information
both at home and during deployments.
BBB Military Line has
also kicked off a nationwide series of workshops,
ranging from “military
smart” consumer workshops, teenager workshops
for dependent children of those serving, and workshops
on car buying. Future plans include workshops on
home purchase and investing for retirement -- all
necessary areas for any American family, especially
the increasingly challenged military family.
And with an eye on the future, Petraeus is thinking
about expansion. In addition to workshops, the
Internet is an area of focus, particularly because
she believes BBB delivers impartiality, trustworthiness
and a wealth of research on companies that independent
unsourced blogs and bulletin board Web sites do
not offer.
“We direct people to resources they can
trust,” she says. “In a way, what
we do is counseling.”
Additionally, as a non-profit,
501(c)(3) organization, funding support will
also increase its reach and positive impact for
years to come. “My biggest
wish is to expand the number of service members
and families we reach.”
Looking overall, Petraeus
is vigilant in protecting servicemen and women
from unfair business practices. Yet, she is confident
that Corporate America will respond to the needs
of today’s military. “Right
now there’s a widespread desire to support
the military in the business community. I am old
enough to remember the Vietnam era when there was
not that support for the military. It’s really
a 180 degree difference.”
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