Marriage Day smoothes processing for newlyweds Published Jan. 6, 2010 By Airman 1st Class Valerie Hosea 82nd Training Wing Public Affairs SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- The 82nd Force Support Squadron will host its annual Marriage Day Jan. 9 to ease the processing of Airmen in Training and their new spouses. One of the most popular times for Airmen in Training to get married is over the two-week Holiday Exodus. More than 100 Airmen returned from this year's Exodus as newlyweds. Maj. Robert Hoskins, 82nd FSS commander, said that while this is an exciting time for the Airmen, it can also be stressful because of the processing that is required. "We have Marriage Day to ensure the couples get the benefits that they're entitled to right away," he said. "They may not know where to go or who to see once they've married, but we do. We want to avoid having lost spouses living 'outside the gate' who don't know what to do to. "I've never seen more happy people than a room full of about 300 newlyweds on Marriage Day," Major Hoskins said. Tech. Sgt. Juanita Riley, 82nd FSS noncomissioned officer in charge of customer support, said Marriage Day helps the Airmen and the FSS customers. "It helps the AiT to not miss class time because of the processing," she said. "For the FSS, it sort of brings the processing altogether, and doesn't keep our other customers waiting on the marriage processing procedures." Major Hoskins said Marriage Day also prevents bigger problems that may occur in the future. "This day will get all of the AiT's marriage and dependant information updated immediately," he said. "If something like this were to go unsettled, it could cause problems as big as impacting an Airman's assignment orders. The sooner we know, the sooner we can help."