The soldiers of the 155th Brigade are leaving their lives behind to serve their country on active duty. Newscenter 11 joined units from all over the state at Camp Shelby for a look at how national guardsmen are preparing for duty in Iraq.

About a dozen Blackhawk helicopters also brought around 100 Mississippi employers as well, most of whom have employees who have left work for a year to fulfill their missions in Iraq.

"It looks rough," said Melvin Ray of Mississippi State University. "And I'm sure it is rough when you see those young men and women, You know it's rough."

But that's the point the host group is trying to make. ESGR, which stands for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, wants to make sure the thousands of soldiers leaving work will be able to return to supportive working conditions in a year.

And those employers who made the trip say even if they already had an appreciation for the work these soldiers do, it has been taken to a new level after seeing their employees train for war.

"Seeing the people there, seeing the problems they face with explosions, it lets us know how tough it is," said Danny Coggins of Gulf States Manufacturers.

But for one of the visitors, this was more of a personal trip. James Robert Hitt, a county supervisor in Webster County, was able to visit with his grandson before he leaves for Iraq.

"He has been over there once before and he's going back on a second tour," said Hitt. "I hate to see him go."

"It's good to see him again before we go," said Hitt's grandson, Specialist Taylor Hitt.

But overall, the guests say they are glad to see that that our servicemen and women will be prepared for combat.

"It is shocking what they have to go through. And I am very pleased that they are getting such thorough training," said Cara Divelbliss of ESGR. "It makes a big difference to the employer because they just see the employee leaving them, but now they get to see what's going on."

And while we loaded back in our helicopters to head back to Meridian, Kosciusko, Tupelo or Jackson, it was hard to leave knowing we were leaving our hometown heroes behind.