DVIDS – News – Finance supports Team Moody through hurricane evacuation voucher process

MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. – The 23rd Comptroller Squadron brought in finance professionals from across the Air Force to help Airmen and their families file travel reimbursement vouchers from Oct. 14-24 after evacuating due to Hurricane Helene.

The 23rd Wing directed a Limited Evacuation Order to provide relief to Airmen whose homes were uninhabitable during the early recovery portions after the hurricane made landfall on Sept. 27, 2024. Now, these affected Airmen have had dedicated attention to their voucher submission and reimbursement process. To handle the increased number of voucher filings and the complex submission requirements, the 23rd CPTS recruited finance experts from nearby installations to ensure vouchers are processed efficiently while streamlining the process and reducing the financial stress on evacuees.

“It’s been a weird experience with the whole hurricane … but I know we’re helping out people, and making sure they’re getting paid,” said Airman 1st Class Ricardo Busta, 23rd CPTS finance professional. “That’s all that matters.”

Typically, requests to Moody’s finance team are done online, but due to the widespread effect of the recent hurricane on Team Moody, Airmen and their families had the opportunity to get the help they needed in person.

“Our office is pretty small, but we’re in an auditorium right now,” Busta said about the wing’s effort to make the process faster and easier. “it’s way more engaging than just submitting things online. It’s not the same as talking to a computer. In some cases, it can be better to talk to a real person. They can ask questions and get reimbursed.”

For those who evacuated with their families, the assistance was much-needed relief. The help provided by financial professionals from other military installations, proved to be vital in providing a smoother way forward.

“When these emergency circumstances arise, there are a lot of questions that can come up about how to handle certain situations,” said Paul Hartness, 23rd CPTS quality assurance manager. “I know a great deal of folks deployed just a week before the storm hit, and there were a lot of dependents left behind. We got the chance to make it easier for them.”

The 23rd CPTS will continue working with evacuees in the coming weeks, ensuring that all travel vouchers are processed promptly. This initiative underscores the importance of inter-base collaboration in supporting military families during crises.