BOISE -- More than 1,500 Idaho soldiers were deployed to Iraq earlier this week, leaving their families behind.
The city of Boise introduced a program today to help out those families cope with the deployment.
It's called “Our Troops, Our Families” -- a support program that provides free recreational activities to military families so they can more easily face the difficult year ahead.
Lisa Ream's husband is deployed to Iraq. She and her two kids are like hundreds of other Idaho military families who are left to cope with their loved ones half-a-world away for a year.
“Just seeing my kids is the hardest part. That makes me tear up because they don't understand as many things," said Lisa Ream.
"Your family is always the concern," said Maj. Gen. Gary L. Saylor. "You're so far away and you don't have the kind of communication where you can deal with the problems that come up."
"We got together and encouraged our department heads to start scheming about how can we help?" said Boise Mayor Dave Bieter.
The answer is a program called “Our Troops, Our Families” where any military family gets free admission to Zoo Boise on Oct. 2, Idaho Ice World on dates in January and February, a free swim next summer, free fire station tours on a day in April and more.
"Living in a community where you know that the people around you care and understand the sacrifices that you're making, and anything that people do is so great," said Ream.
Bieter is encouraging everyone in the community to help out military families any way you can.
"If a service family is in your neighborhood offer to help, because you know they're without an important person in their family," said Bieter.
"If you have a community that's involved in caring for those soldiers then those things happen. Once again, it lets the soldier focus on his mission, which is important for the nation and important for his safety," said Saylor.
"My neighbor mowed my lawn yesterday without me knowing. I've been teared up all day about it just knowing that people care," said Ream.
Boise will also provide free personal computer tech support for military families on a day in December, and possibly free webcam communication with their deployed family member on a day to be determined.
More than 750 Idaho soldiers have children and about 60 percent of the deployed soldiers have been deployed before.
