Welcome to StacyBannerman.com

In the ongoing war on terror, record numbers of National Guard soldiers and Reservists are being deployed overseas – over half a million to date. Most of these citizen soldiers never thought they’d see combat; many of them are blatantly opposed to the war in Iraq. In 2007, at the annual National Guard conference, a call by Puerto Rico's governor for a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq earned a standing ovation from more than 4,000 National Guardsmen.

In the early years of the war, many Guard and Reservists were dangerously under equipped during their combat deployments, and Guard and Reserve troops have served the longest tours-of-duty in Iraq. These “weekend warriors” and their families have paid a heavy price. National Guard soldiers have far higher rates of post-combat stress, marriage problems, and financial issues, including the loss of homes and civilian jobs, than their active duty counterparts. The families left behind are typically isolated and alone, struggling without the support and services available to active duty families residing on military bases.

Stacy Bannerman is the wife of an Army National Guard soldier who was awarded the Bronze Star and Combat Infantry Badge during his first tour in Iraq. When the War Came Home chronicles the impact of operationalizing the forces that were intended to function as strategic reserves, and provides a personal account of Stacy’s home front experience as she speaks out against a war that her husband is fighting. SFC Bannerman is serving his second tour in Iraq in 2008-09, while Stacy Bannerman is in southern Oregon, providing Sanctuary Weekends™ for veterans and military families, advocating for a Military Family Leave Act, and working on her second book.