In the 1800s, sources cite the ombudsman as a new civil service position created by the Swedish parliament. It became known as the representative of the people because of its focus on advocacy.
Carol Jones, the Coast Guard’s ombudsman-at-large (OAL) serves in a similar spirit—specifically advocating for Coast Guard families and ensuring their voices are heard at the highest levels of leadership. A sort of a go-between for families and leadership, the OAL is a designated and appointed liaison who reports directly to the commandant. The volunteer position is filled by the spouse of a Coast Guard leader.
Jones is married to Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard (MCPOCG) Heath B. Jones. Depending on the commandant, they could decide to appoint several OALs however, currently Jones is the Coast Guard’s only OAL.
“As the MCPOCG’s spouse, it makes it so that I can go and talk to the ombudsmen and to the families and get to the ground truth,” said Jones. “Our members don’t always feel comfortable bringing their issues directly to their commands.” Her duties officially began when her husband assumed office on May 19, 2022.
“I tell them that I don’t have all of the answers, but I have the ear of some really smart people, she said. “I get to talk to amazing spouses and allow them to have voice.”
For example, Jones intervened when Red Hill water crisis was largely resolved—the reported water contamination that impacted military families in and around Joint Base Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. “The DOD reported that everything was taken care of, but this wasn’t well-communicated to the impacted families,” explained Jones.
She was called to assist and within a month, she was able to get updated water test results into the hands of those spouses, “which gave them a little peace of mind,” she recalled. “Understandably, some of the spouses were afraid to even give their children a bath.”
Aside from being a trusted voice and advocate, Jones connects families to resources and ensures information gets to where it needs to go. She explains “my job is not to find the answers. My job is to bring the people together that can answer the questions or solve the problems.”
One way she does this is to meet regularly with the ombudsman program manager and the leads for the Pacific and Atlantic areas—all of whom brainstorm and problem-solve on behalf of Coast Guard families. Ombudsman Program Manager Chris DeGraw talks about the work of the OAL from her perspective, "The OAL plays a key role with the ombudsman program. She is responsible for advising senior leadership on matters affecting Coast Guard members and their families that assist with improving family readiness,” said DeGraw. “She has been in the role for two years and she continuously strives to connect family members with their ombudsman, and to market the benefits of the program to ensure its longevity in the future.”
In the near-term, information sharing and knowledge management are perhaps two of the biggest gaps Jones aims to fill, especially for new spouses. Specifically, Jones is working to aid in the improvement of training to the 320 ombudsman volunteers and to systemize processes while improving the sharing of resources.
To this end, she has a vision to get every district involved with in-person trainings and she refers to the gatherings as “a meeting of the minds.” The ultimate goal is to one-day have a national ombudsman convention built upon the templates of these smaller meetings.
In April, the command master chief in Hawaii initiated a similar idea and reached out to Jones. Immediately Jones flew there to watch, support and build a template that she could take to other districts. “It was fantastic. We had 12 ombudsmen there from all over Honolulu and from Guam and other local areas. We did SAFE Talk training and several support organizations came and shared about services they provide to military families.”
On the second day of the event, Rear Adm. Michael Day, who was then district commander, took everyone to the light house and hosted an ombudsman appreciation celebration. Because Jones typically travels with the MCPOCG or the commandant, this trip was a first since she traveled alone and with her own agenda. Another district training will be held at the end of this month in Seattle, District 13.
Fitting into her vision of increased access and awareness of Coast Guard resources, Jones is also supporting the Guardian Spouses in Cape May, New Jersey through the Guardian Website. It’s an aggregated resource that pulls together key information for spouses.
Jones credits her 29 years as a Coast Guard spouse for her ability to reflect on the past and plan strategically for the future. Time and time again, one of the largest challenges she’s seen is when families have no awareness of available resources.
“My biggest fear is that there will be this family in crisis mode, the wheels are off the bus and that this will be the first time they connect with their ombudsman,” said Jones. She emphasizes the importance of having the spouses be aware of their ombudsman and the resources they need—before they actually need them.
“Our spouses and families are going into communities where they don’t know anybody, they don’t know the resources, and they don’t know anything about the area. Our ombudsmen are the experts and if we don’t connect these two together then we are failing.”
As Jones sees it, being able to connect our families to what they need is the truest value of the ombudsman and its why they remain representatives of the Coast Guard’s people. “My philosophy is that military life is what you put into it. You have to treat it as an adventure, and I see the ombudsmen as tour guides.”
To contact your ombudsman, visit the ombudsman registry and click on the selection, “Contact Your Ombudsman.”
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