We Go Where They Go: A Look at How 5 USO Centers Around the Globe Are Supporting Service Members Today

By Trey Smith

Where can I go to relax outside my barracks after a long workday? What is there to do if I’m stationed in the middle of nowhere? What places offer support to the military community?

These may be the types of questions service members might ask themselves shortly after raising their right hand to take the Oath of Enlistment. And while the people who serve may have a multitude of questions throughout their military career, the answer to many of them is a simple one: the USO.

What they’ll soon learn is that whether they are waiting for the plane that will take them and their family to their new home overseas, or at their first duty station after months of vigorous training at bootcamp, or on the front lines of a conflict, the USO will always be there alongside them.

The USO has over 250 locations in the U.S. and in many different countries around the world, and each of these locations was created to serve military members facing unique challenges. Each USO Center is outfitted with a comfortable space and amenities that allow service members and military family members a brief respite on their military journey. From the men and women who are recovering from the wounds of service to the families whose loved one has made the ultimate sacrifice, to service members who are deployed to conflict zones, the USO continues to find a way to meet ever-changing needs of the military community, wherever they may go.

The USO Center at Philadelphia International Airport

When you hear “USO Center,” your first thought might be our airport lounges. Among the 250+ USO locations around the globe, many of them were created with the purpose of supporting service members and military families who are traveling through airports around the country.

Traveling members of the military community can stop at USO airport Centers for a short or extended pit stop, and enjoy the same offerings featured at many of our brick-and-mortar Centers, including televisions, video and board games, snacks, a comfortable place to rest and free Wi-Fi, all provided by our friendly and helpful USO staff and volunteers.

The people who serve and their family members face all of the typical stressors that come with making one’s way from one location to another, however they often must deal with additional challenges that come with military life, which is why having a USO Center to turn to during their travels can make such a difference. These challenges can include everything from taking a plane to their new duty station, heading off for deployment, traveling to Dover Air Force Base for the dignified transfer of a loved one or even heading out on their very first step of their military journey: boot camp.

The USO Center at Philadelphia International Airport remains one of our most unique airport Centers, as it has been the muster point for Coast Guard recruits for more than 40 years. In that time, approximately 130,000 fresh recruits have started the earliest part of their military career by making their way through the USO Center at this airport. Future Coasties muster here 42 weeks out of the year, and while open 12 hours-a-day, every day of the year, the USO has dedicated Tuesdays to these new recruits, dubbed “Coast Guard Tuesdays.”

Coast Guard Tuesdays are special in that USO staff and volunteers go above and beyond when serving our newest members of the military community. They cater to recruits’ needs with home-cooked meals, including dessert and above all else, they provide a listening ear as well as offer guidance and advice for service members who may be anxious about their new journey that is just 97 miles away.

This provides these new recruits with a chance to relax and quite literally coast while creating some of their earliest bonds before boot camp begins. From the time these young individuals first enter the USO Philadelphia International Airport Center, to when it’s time for USO volunteers to line up the recruits in the terminal and walk them down to their bus, the efforts of our USO volunteers offer Coast Guard recruits peace of mind as they begin their military journey.

The USO Center at Camp Casey, South Korea

When people think of a military deployment, locations such as Eastern Europe and the Middle East often come to mind. However, many members of the civilian community may be surprised to learn that the U.S. military has maintained a presence in the Republic of Korea – also known as South Korea – for decades, including thousands of soldiers who are serving at U.S. Army Garrison Camp Casey.

Even though many military families are stationed in South Korea, soldiers deployed to Camp Casey are on an “unaccompanied tour,” in other words, they must leave their families behind in the U.S., as this is a deployment, not a duty station. This is because Camp Casey is just 13 miles from the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), which is a highly intense strip of land that separates North and South Korea. Here, U.S. service members serve alongside our South Korean allies as a deterrence for the conflict between North and South Korea.

This, of course, can be an incredibly stressful deployment location for U.S. soldiers, as tensions are consistently high between North Korea and South Korea and the border is outfitted with tens of thousands of artillery weapons and rocket launchers. The people deployed here must remain vigilant for conflict that can arise at any moment.

To help alleviate stress and lift their spirits, USO Camp Casey remains steadfast in its support and commitment to the service members on this unique deployment. Despite its location in this intense region, USO Camp Casey is outfitted with classic USO amenities like free snacks and Wi-Fi, comfy spaces to relax in and places to watch TV and game with their fellow service members, helping to forge connections with one another and stay in touch with their loved ones.

“I have two sons, Jayrald and John, back in the States,” said U.S. Army Spc. Consuelo Sanchez, a military mom deployed to Camp Casey. “When I deployed away from my family this time, I didn’t have internet connection in my barracks, so I was looking for some information on Korea since everything is new to me. The first place I could think of was the USO. The staff and volunteers were extremely kind when I visited the Center. And I was finally able to talk to my children by using their free Wi-Fi.”

Recently, a USO Entertainment tour brought a visit from the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders to the soldiers at USO Camp Casey. Since 1941, the USO has been providing entertainment for service members on the front lines and the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders have participated in 85 USO tours (and counting!). They continued that tradition when they visited Camp Casey for their final stop and performance on their USO tour, treating service members to a special routine created just for them.

“To be on the DMZ where there is a lot of tension and to know that there’s some levity provided by our football team, and, of course, by the DCC and USO visit, it’s truly awesome,” said Shelly, a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader.

The USO Warrior Center in Landstuhl, Germany

At the USO, when we say, “we go where they go,” that means being there for service members along every step of their military journey. From the time they enlist, to deployments and different duty stations, to their transition back into the civilian community and everything in between, the USO is always there, ready to support. That includes any recovery journey a service member may endure during their military career.

While USO Centers are known for being outfitted with everything from TVs, gaming systems, comfortable furnishings and programs, our foremost goal is to boost the morale and strengthen the well-being of the people in the military community, in whatever way we can. That goal was kept front-of-mind when we opened the USO Warrior Center in Landstuhl, Germany.

Though the USO now operates four of these special Centers, (the others being the USO Warrior and Family Centers at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, the USO Warrior and Family Center at Bethesda, Maryland, and the USO Warrior and Family Center in San Antonio, Texas), the USO Warrior Center in Landstuhl, Germany, was the first of its kind. The Center was opened near the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, a medical facility that is often the first stop for service members who have experienced injuries or fallen ill due to their service in conflict zones. These injuries, whether visible or invisible, can lead the people who serve on a long path to recovery, away from their loved ones and their units back on the front lines.

This isolation and the often-stressful journey of recovery can take its toll on these service members, which is why the USO Warrior Center was built – to provide a relaxing environment, away from the fluorescent lights of the hospital, where they can recharge and take time to themselves. As recovering service members use these facilities, the familiar faces and support of USO staff and volunteers, as well as of their fellow service members, can also make a positive impact.

These USO Warrior Centers also have programs and events designed specifically for recovering service members. For example, recuperating patients can partake in special activities such as art and cooking classes, or yoga and music hours and much more. On the surface, these may seem like simple activities, but they have been proven to help service members reduce pain and anxiety. Music, in particular, helps service members cope with PTSD and other injuries as a result of their service.

The Center also receives weekly visits from therapy dogs as part of the USO Canine Program. These dogs, who are technically USO volunteers themselves, offer relief – especially for those struggling with mental health, including PTSD. Research shows that interacting with animals can make an improvement in one’s physical and mental health. Other studies show that petting an animal can lower blood pressure and release hormones such as phenylethylamine, an anti-depressant. Just as importantly, these special, furry USO volunteers often give recovering service members a different way of thinking and connecting to home, as they are often inspired to open up and talk about their own dogs waiting for them back home.

“It’s just amazing,” said Richard Rice, a U.S. Army veteran who volunteers at the Center alongside his therapy dog. “The presence of the dog just puts a smile on people’s faces, and it really changes the atmosphere. It adds a little special quality to their daily lives, and they need that for mental health, for their self-care – that’s important.”

The USO Center at Join Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska

For anyone who is part of the military community, it can sometimes feel as if certain locations are more manageable than others, when it comes to PCS moves and deployments. And when it comes to service members stationed in Alaska – a location known for its dark winters, short days and below-freezing temperatures, as well as its isolating location far from loved ones and nonstop sunlight during the summer – it can be especially challenging. Aside from the difficult physical environment of Alaska, service members stationed here also often have limited opportunities to take a break from their daily duties or barracks, and find activities or places to recharge.

That is why having a supportive environment like the USO Center at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson is so important.

The USO Center at Join Base Elmendorf-Richardson serves as a home away from home for the people deployed to Alaska, where they can find refuge from the extreme weather, but most importantly, a community to rely on when things get tough.

And for other service members serving throughout Alaska with no brick-and-mortar USO Center nearby at remote bases and outposts, we are still by their side. USO staff and volunteers are dedicated to traveling literally tens of thousands of miles to reach them in one of our Mobile USO vehicles. These “Centers-on-wheels" are equipped with many of the same amenities of a typical USO Center, everything from the free Wi-Fi and gaming systems to heating and a comfortable place to sit and relax. In July 2023, the USO team began operating a new Mobile USO food trailer, and now the USO team can provide even more creative ways of supporting and strengthening these men and women through the delivery of food and beverages, outdoor games and entertainment.

The USO Center at Camp Lemmonier in Djibouti, Africa and expeditionary support

The continent of Africa, home to some of the world’s most vast deserts and scorching temperatures, is also home to thousands of U.S. service members. Although there are several U.S. military bases throughout Africa, many service members are located in undisclosed locations that are not only far away from loved ones, but also from most connections to the outside world, leaving them in a challenging deployment environment that is completely unfamiliar to them.

Service members on these deployments must not only face the remoteness of these bases and high-pressure nature of their missions, but they must also do so with limited resources due to the dangerous locations of their outposts. Some of these locations have just one dining facility and one general store that is approximately the size of a supply closet to buy basic supplies from; most of their barracks are in trailers and tents. With mail deliveries in these locations infrequent, it leaves options at the store extremely limited, meaning basic supplies and amenities are sometimes unavailable.

Regardless of their training, a deployment to any location can be stressful for service members, but this can be amplified when dealing with deployments in high-pressure and austere environments. Usually, service members in these situations can often turn to the USO for support, but these deployment locations and outposts are typically too far out or dangerous for a brick-and-mortar USO Center to be built and staffed. Although there is a USO Center at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, with plenty of amenities and staff to offer programs and support to service members nearby, there are even more service members at military outposts throughout the rest of the continent that are outside the Center’s immediate reach, which has led the USO team to develop new and creative ways to support these service members wherever they are.

Over the last couple years, the USO Camp Lemonnier team and the USO expeditionary team has continuously made trips to provide support and relief to service members deployed to undisclosed, downrange locations. This involves sending teams to these distant locations for weeks at a time to provide temporary relief, anything from the deliveries of USO Care Packages to surprising service members with their favorite treats, and even the delivery of the USO Reading Program so service members can record a bedtime story for their child back home, giving them an opportunity remain connected to their loved ones, no matter the distance.

After more than 80 years since our inception, the USO continues to increase our efforts in strengthening the people who serve, and thanks to the generosity of our supporters, the military community at home and abroad can rest assured knowing that we will be with them every step of the way.