UNITED STATES CORPS OF CHAPLAINS
NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS
CLANTON, AL 35046
USCOC PAMPHLET 150
ESTABLISHING NEW UNITS
10 JANUARY 2005

ESTABLISHING NEW UNITS

  1. Read the USCOC-101: Basic Orientation Guide.
     
  2. Read the USCOC-105: Membership, Appointments, and Promotions
     
  3. Read the USCOC-140: Unit Organization and Structure
     
  4. Additional information can be found on the Publications Page.
     
  5. Recruit members who live in reasonable geographic proximity to each other. New USCOC units are formed as Teams.
     
  6. Screen potential members carefully. Complete and submit a Membership Application for the recruited members with you listed as the recruiter.
     
  7. Contact the Company, Battalion, Brigade, or Division to which you are assigned and speak with unit Personnel Chief or Unit Commander.  If you are not assigned to any of these units, the National Board of Directors is your organizational contact.  Because of distances, a face to face meeting may be impractical, but during the organizational process you must maintain regular contact with this individual.  He or she is there to advise you step by step as you work through the organizational process.
     
  8. Contact the Veterans and Disaster organizations in your area and find out how your unit may help as needs develop.
     
  9. Visit the nursing home, assisted living, and senior living facilities in your area and find out how you and your unit may help in ministry and presentation of religious and patriotic programs (you will also find many veterans and veteran's spouses in these facilities who you can help).
     
  10. Start assigning jobs to the people recruited to join the unit.  Organizing a new unit is a lot of work, and by giving your new members parts of it you will finish sooner and find out who is serious about making the unit function.
     
  11. Get members started on their individual training.   See that they complete the USCOC-101: Basic Orientation Course.
     
  12. Plan a training schedule for the unit.
     
  13. Develop a meeting schedule. Depending on the level of unit activities, a meeting should be held at least once a month.
     
  14. Get your members into the basic uniform (Class B) and encourage uniform wear at every meeting.
     
  15. Submit monthly activity reports to the unit staff to which your unit is assigned