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FAYETTEVILLE – Military families are reacting to President Obama's call for more programs to offer them support. On Monday, the President announced nearly 50 commitments by various agencies to lighten the load for military families.

Stacy Strauss knows how hard it can be on the families. She had to stay at home worrying while her fiance served a year in Afghanistan.

"It was my fiance's first deployment and my biggest fear was that he would come back a different man, a different man than I fell in love with," said Strauss.

Strauss considers herself fortunate that her fiance came back unharmed, and unchanged. She says the family readiness group for her fiance's unit took her in and helped support her through the year long deployment.

"They really helped me get through the year that my fiance was deployed," said Strauss.

President Obama says he wants to help families like Strauss' who have to face hardships while a service member is called to duty. While asking troops in Afghanistan what he could do for them, the President says he was repeatedly told to take care of the families.

The first category of commitments under the President's initiative is to deal with helping the well-being and psychological health of military families. The second category would ensure excellence in the education of military families. Another group of commitments would help career and educational opportunities for military spouses. The final goal is to increase child care availability.

"I want every service member who's deployed to know that when you're over there taking care of the country that you love, your country is back here taking care of the families that you love," said President Obama.

John Meroski, the chairman of Army's Army, a community based support organization in Fayetteville believes helping military families is the right thing to do.

"Anything that we can do and this country can do to forward that initiative is really good news all around,” said Meroski.

Strauss also appreciates the President's plan.

"I am just really glad they are placing emphasis on military families and supporting military families even more," she said.