IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 5 February 2014 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20130010342 THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE: 1. Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any). 2. Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any). THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant requests her records be corrected to show her married last name. 2. The applicant states, in effect, she married on 8 March 2013 and wants her last name changed. 3. The applicant provides a marriage certificate. CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant retired on 30 April 2011 in the rank of master sergeant. 2. Item 1 (Name) of her DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) shows the entry "Cxxxxx" as her last name. 3. She provided a certificate of marriage, dated 8 March 2013. 4. Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents) prescribes the separation documents prepared for Soldiers upon retirement, discharge, or release from active military service or control of the Army. It establishes standardized policy for the preparation of the DD Form 214 and states that the DD Form 214 is a synopsis of the Soldier's most recent period of continuous active duty. It provides a brief, clear-cut record of active Army service at the time of release from active duty, retirement, or discharge. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. The DD Form 214 is a "snapshot in time" and is a reflection of the applicant's record of active Army service at the time of her release from active duty. 2. Evidence shows she married in March 2013 and apparently changed her last name, almost 2 years after her retirement on 30 April 2011. Therefore, there is no basis for amending item 1 of her DD Form 214. 3. For historical purposes, the Army has an interest in maintaining the integrity of its records. The data and information contained in those records should reflect the conditions and circumstances that existed at the time the records were created. In the absence of a showing of material error or injustice, there is a reluctance to recommend that those records be changed. 4. The applicant is advised that a copy of this decisional document which confirms her legal name change will be filed in her Army Military Human Resource Record (AMHRR), formerly known as her Official Military Personnel File. This should serve to clarify any questions or confusion regarding the difference in the name recorded in her AMHRR and to satisfy her desire to have her current legal name documented in her military record. 5. However, if it is the applicant's retired pay records that she wishes to update the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) has stated in previous cases that it is their policy to refer retirees to the U.S. Army Human Resources Command to approve a name change. The applicant should therefore provide supporting documentation to: Commander, Human Resources Command, ATTN: AHRC-PDR-VI, 1600 Spearhead Division Avenue, Fort Knox, KY 40122 requesting approval of her name change and inform DFAS when it has been approved. BOARD VOTE: ________ ________ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ____X____ ___X_____ ____X____ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice. Therefore, the Board determined that the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the records of the individual concerned. _______ _ _X______ ___ CHAIRPERSON I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20130010342 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20130010342 2 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1