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Lodge in Eden offers military families a retreat before deployment

Posted at 7:44 PM, Sep 26, 2014
and last updated 2014-09-26 23:57:15-04

EDEN, Utah -- Jared Graham from Provo ships off for Afghanistan next month, and he'll be away from his wife and two sons for almost a year.

“He's a huge part of helping take care of our kids, and it's hard and they miss him a lot--our one son especially has a really hard time, his nighttime routine is daddy singing to him,” said Laura Graham.

To help families like the Grahams get through deployment, the Wolf Creek Lodge is hosting a retreat for military families this weekend.

“It’s a great opportunity for us to be together and spend some time together and maybe gain some tools to build our relationship or keep it strong while we're gone,” said Jared Graham.

They will have activities for the families as well as classes on how to keep relationships strong during deployment.

“What we're going to be doing is giving them a set of things they can do while that member is gone, not just Skype--but how do we really stay connected?” said Scott Baker, who is a chaplain at Hill Air Force Base.

Organizers said these retreats cost $50,000, but for the military families who come it's completely free.

“These kind of things we wouldn't be able to afford on the salary of military members, so it's nice to be treated this way and be appreciated,” said Jared Graham.

This marks the 27th such retreat the Wolf Creek Lodge has hosted since 2006.