MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- For more than a century, the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society has offered financial, educational, and other assistance to members of the Naval Services of the United States.

Established in 1904, NMCRS is a private, non-profit, volunteer, service organization sponsored by the Department of the Navy. In partnership with the Navy and Marine Corps, the Society operates nearly 250 offices ashore and afloat at Navy and Marine Corps bases throughout the world, including two offices aboard Camp Pendleton.

Both NMCRS offices here provide various services to sailors, Marines and their families, retirees and surviving spouses, including interest-free loans or grants, education loans and grants, money management classes, baby workshops, thrift shops and more.

In 2011, both offices combined provided more than 4.9 million dollars in financial assistance to service members and their families, said Mike Hire, director, NMCRS, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.

One of the offices’ most popular assistance programs is the Quick Assistance Loan Program, established in 2008.

Created for active-duty service members as an alternative to short-term, high-interest loans, QALs are need-based, interest free loans provided to service members to help with emergency needs, such as essential vehicle repairs, child care expenses, unforeseen family emergencies or food, rent and utilities. Service members can borrow up to $300 twice a year, repayable within 10 months.        

“The Quick Assistance Loan Program continues to be a huge success and has helped thousands of Marines and sailors with small financial problems that previously would have been solved by borrowing from payday lenders, family or their peers,” said Hire. “The QAL Program has significantly reduced the number of financial problems previously handled by NMCRS and commands.”

Despite the success of the program, overuse of the resource by a small number of Marines and sailors has given NMCRS directors insight into a new and growing problem -- service members consistently overdrawing their accounts and consequently needing QALs more frequently.

“We have seen overdraft and direct deposit advance fees as the fastest growing problem for our clients in 2011,” said Vena Fredericks, director of the NMCRS San Onofre Office. “We are attempting to educate young Marines and sailors of the costs of these programs as most are not aware of what they are actually being charged for the services. The costs can be astronomical when a $25 fee is charged for the bank covering a $6 sub sandwich you didn’t have the money in your account to pay for.”

For Marines and sailors struggling financially, as well as those interested in gaining more financial knowledge, the NMCRS also offers money management classes, which helps attendees create, review and understand their monthly budgets.

As a volunteer organization, the implementation and success of many of the NMCRS programs rely on the loyalty of volunteers.

Several programs are completely managed and operated by volunteers, including the Budget for Baby program, which offers financial and informational workshops for parents-to-be, and the thrift shop, which provides clothing, household items and more to service members and their families.

The Camp Pendleton NMCRS offices have more than 100 volunteers who completed more than 30,000 hours collectively during 2011, and are always seeking more.

“We utilize online services such as volunteermatch.com and the Camp Pendleton volunteer site, and have created a relationship with the Family Member Employment Assistance Program, which has referred several volunteers to us,” said Jennifer Smit, Chair of Volunteers for NMCRS Mainside. “Those interested in volunteering can stop by our office anytime.”

Both NMCRS offices aboard Pendleton continue to provide a variety of useful services to sailors, Marines and their families, and were very successful this past year, said Col. Nicholas F. Marano, commanding officer, Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton.

“This is a great organization because of the people who care about sailors, Marines and their families,” said Marano. “All who have done their part deserve to be commended for their hard work.”