Maj. Ronald Holden tells his wife that he originally served the Army Reserve one weekend a month and two weeks in the summer.

Now, half kidding, he points out that his roles have been reversed: He’s only at home one weekend a month -- even after a nearly year-long deployment to Iraq. That mission was quickly followed by a domestic training assignment.

“I wasn’t there to do a lot of the things heads of households do,” Holden said. “But with the help of a few neighbors and the children, things at home have maintained the status quo.”

Holden is the face of the post 9-11 Army Reserve and National Guard: Men and women straining to serve their nation while maintaining family ties and holding down civilian jobs.

Once the domain of weekend warriors, today’s reserve units face an almost certain prospect of deployment due to America’s need for soldiers in the Middle East.

This phenomenon is placing a strain on the Guard and Reserve family support programs and the soldiers and families themselves.

“We’re being put to the test,” said Lt. Col. Richard Flynn, chief of the Family Readiness Branch at the National Guard Bureau in Arlington, Va. “The challenges of deployment have certainly increased dramatically compared to the old peacekeeping things we used to do.”

The Reserve used to operate under the strategy that “if World War III breaks out, we'll be called to respond,” said Maj. Bill Nutter, chief of Marketing and Media Relations for the Reserve. “Soldiers would also have advance warning and plenty of time to mobilize and train before being expected to respond. The events of 2001 changed the rules of the game.”

Especially hit hard have been some small business owners, including professionals such as lawyers and dentists.

“We have had many cases where people had to sell or shut down their businesses,” said Flynn.

Family support divisions have responded by dramatically increasing staffing to help soldiers and their dependents. They have also rolled out Web sites, plus e-mail and phone campaigns to keep military families informed of benefits and services.

“It’s really kind of a marketing campaign, if you will, and we try to make sure we touch every family in some way – the way that works best for them,” Flynn said.

But even with the extra attention and funding, challenges remain.

“It has been a difficult transition for some folks,” he said.

Following are the stories of five Guard and Reserve families and their perspectives on long-term deployments to Iraq – the good, the bad and the ugly.

Science teacher gets experiment in readiness

Staff Sgt. Jeff Johnson, of Kansas City, Mo., wasn’t surprised when he got the call to Iraq in January of 2003. In fact, he was excited to put his special operations training into practice.

“But the other side was, you know I’ve got an eight-month old and I’d really like to see her grow up,” said Johnson, 34.

A high school science teacher in a suburban school district, he served with the 418th Civil Affairs Battalion for 15 months.

Difficulty communicating from Iraq and fluctuating return dates proved challenging to his family’s peace of mind. And when his wife, Melisa, sought information and support through a battalion group for families, it fell short of expectations.

The group was led by the wife of an officer who was living in conditions that were more secure and comfortable than many other members of the battalion.

“The vast majority of the troops did not have running water or Internet access” like the officer did, Johnson said. “There was that kind of disconnect. It was an attempt by the unit to try to disseminate information as best as possible, but it wasn’t very effective.”

However, the importance of the group diminished as communication from Iraq improved. In addition, Melisa found a reservists’ church group independent of the battalion that was more relevant to her needs.

Looking back, Johnson said the deployment experience would have been improved if it was easier to call and e-mail home.

“The huge thing is communication,” he said. “Communication is really the key to trying to deal with all the fears.”

Before heading home, Johnson was briefed on his rights as an employee and was told how to contact military lawyers if problems arose. In retrospect, it was time well spent.

Upon returning, Johnson said his school district’s human resources manager offered him a position that was, in effect, a demotion. Johnson ultimately had to threaten legal action to get his proper position and pay restored. Once confronted, the administrator backed down.

“If I would not have been proactive or had a different response, it would have been a financial hardship,” he said.

Although the mission challenged the family, Johnson was proud to fulfill his duty and has little sympathy for those who complain about being deployed.

“I put it in the perspective of being in 140 degree weather with people shooting at you and no running water,” he said. “It’s like that bumper sticker: ‘A bad day fishing is better than a good day at the office.’ It definitely gave me a better appreciation for veterans and the freedoms we enjoy.”

Johnson is now readying himself for a different deployment: a new career as an FBI special agent.

Police officer gets Baghdad beat

National Guard Specialist John Easley got some advanced career training when he was deployed to Iraq for 10 months in 2003-2004.

The Lee’s Summit, Mo., police officer served as an MP in the 1139th Company in his first overseas mission. He said the rough and tumble training ground of Iraq helped make him a better patrol officer.

“Lee’s Summit isn’t the shooting gallery Baghdad is,” he said. “It’s given me an ability to think more clearly in high stress decisions. I don’t think I suffer from sensory overload. I see things as they are.”

Easley, 36, left his wife, Dawnelle, with two children under age 2. Although challenged, she rose to the occasion, working part time and even sending care packages to her husband.

“She aced it,” he said. “She did such a helluva good job. She took care of my boys. She didn’t know she could take on such a huge responsibility by herself. It proved to her that she was a lot stronger than she thought she was.”

Dawnelle participated in a family support group that shared information and encouragement. The group also had a food and supply pantry that helped meet family needs.

After finishing his tour, Easley rejoined the Guard and expects to be deployed in 2008.

Major Returns From Iraq to Serve on the Homefront

When Reserve Maj. Ronald Holden returned from Iraq in September of 2005, he didn’t put his feet up. Instead, he volunteered for a training assignment about 280 miles from home at Fort McCoy, Wis.

Holden said his training did not adequately prepare him for Iraq and he wants others to be battle ready.

“Sometimes things are important enough to you that you make sacrifices,” he said.”

Holden, however, said it’s all a matter of perspective: “I lost a few friends over in Iraq and my sacrifices are nothing compared to theirs.”

Holden, 39, trained and mentored an Iraqi combat battalion in the 1-8 Cavalry, 5 Brigadier Combat Team, the 1st Cavalry Division.

The resident of Channahon, Ill., is a design technician for a civil engineering firm. Although he has been deployed extensively, Holden said he has a good relationship with his boss and has worked for the same company for 11 years. Once he returns, he expects to work extra hard to catch up on the latest software.

He’ll also have to catch up with his family, whom he sees about once per month. Training operations keep him from traveling home most weekends.

“We need to focus our efforts on training these soldiers who are going into harm’s way, so my family has taken a back seat,” he said. “It’s never easy being away from home for an extensive period of time.”

Holden said health care has also been a challenge for his family. The Reserve’s TRICARE program did not offer the specialists his wife needed locally. The nearest military medical facility is a two-hour drive from his home. As a result, he is purchasing insurance from his civilian employer under COBRA provisions.

“If there is a way for that to be improved, to simplify that, it would be a huge benefit to reservists and National Guard soldiers who are mobilized,” he said.

Although Holden is no stranger to danger, he makes it clear who his heroes are.

“The heroes are the ones we left behind, the ones who have to continue life without us for a year,” he said.

Former pastor rejoins ministry as Reserve chaplain

Maj. Steve Quigg feels the strain of separation from his family in Kansas City, Mo. But he has the sense of confidence that, as a chaplain, he is making a difference.

“The experience I have had has been a blessing beyond description,” he said in an online interview from Balad Air Base in Camp Anaconda, Iraq.

An Army reservist since 1988, Quigg has served as a pastor and most recently as a bus driver for the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority.

The chaplain, deployed since October of last year, said his family was shaken when he received six days notice before leaving for training.

“We are a family, though, of strong faith in the Lord,” said Quigg, 57. “We all have come to believe that this year has been one that He has been in control of and that He chose for us to experience.”

Quigg’s service in Iraq has meant burying a friend and caring for the wounded.

“God has exposed me to situations that I would not have chosen for myself but He has guided and blessed me,” he said. “I have lost a very dear friend while here and was able to do his memorial ceremony. I have been by the side of soldiers brought into the hospital with the most horrific of injuries and have been able to pray with them and for them. My life has truly been changed.”

From a chaplain’s perspective, Quigg is observing that long-term deployments are having a devastating effect on some marriages.

“I have counseled many soldiers and I believe we are seeing countless families not being able to make it or hang in there because of the long deployments,” he said. “I would urge the leaders of our nation to somehow be able to see that a shorter deployment length for the Army would not only build the morale of the soldier but would save countless families across our great nation.”

Quigg has tentative plans to return home in September.

Mississippi mom holds down the fort

Tina Rowland isn’t a soldier, but she’s holding down the fort in Vicksburg, Miss., while her husband Steve serves in Iraq in the Reserve. Steve, a first sergeant with the 412th Engineering Command, is a veteran of Operation Desert Storm and also served in Bosnia.

Although she is raising four children, including 3-year-old twins, Tina feels Steve’s service in Iraq is the best scenario for their family.

“My husband has a great sense of duty,” she said. “We are a very patriotic family and I believe when you swear in, that’s it. You shouldn’t gripe about it. I married into it. I knew what I was doing.”

Tina said the command’s family readiness unit has provided valuable assistance, including helping her resolve TRICARE enrollment problems.

For her part, Tina coordinates a phone unit that contacts families in her husband’s command to check up on them and “let them talk to an adult voice.”

Although the separation is painful, Tina finds solace that it will end.

“I keep remembering the words, ‘This too shall pass,’” she said. “It will all be over soon and I am proud of what my husband is doing.”

Support Units Fight to Keep Families Informed, Encouraged on the Homefront

The family support divisions of the Army Reserve and National Guard understand that soldiers’ home lives affect their ability to wage war in the field.

That’s why they are rolling out programs and support like never before to assist them.

A program that benefits all military branches is www.militaryonesource.com, a Web site and toll free phone number that provides information on all benefits and opportunities for soldiers and families. These range from finding counseling to college grants, from parenting skills to recovery from substance abuse.

National Guard (www.guardfamily.org) and Reserve (www.arfp.org) Web sites also provide helpful information.

The National Guard operates family assistance centers that serve all branches of the armed services. Reserve Family Program staff serve families in Reserve Centers around the world.

The Guard and Reserve have family readiness groups that support soldiers’ families on the home front through meetings, phone calls and e-mails.

Both branches are also expanding their services to children and youth of deployed family members. In addition, they’ve launched marriage enrichment retreats aimed at helping couples when they are reunited after deployment.