Nathan Love and Westley Cooper hope no one has to use the training they gave this week in Carson City.
About 60 National Guard members participated in a relatively new casualty training program where soldiers learn how to inform family members that an enlisted loved one has died.
In case it happens, the training will make them better prepared.
"It gives them the confidence to go out and give notification," said Cooper, a casualty and mortuary affairs officer out of Fort Huachuca, Ariz.
He and Love, a fellow casualty and mortuary affairs trainer from Fort Irwin, Calif., conducted the training session all day Monday and Tuesday.
Although the Army has always had some sort of training, it used to be up to each state to determine that training.
However, in January, it launched a universal, standardized process to be used throughout the Army.
"Our job is to train them for whatever scenario they may be faced with so they don't go in there blind," Cooper said.
Soldiers watched video interviews with family members who had gone through the process as well as with casualty notification officers who have had to deliver the news.
They also reviewed protocol, such as how to properly identify themselves and to make sure they spoke with the appropriate next of kin rather than with whomever answered the door. They then practiced different scenarios through role-play sessions.
But the training only goes so far.
"I don't think any amount of preparation will actually prepare you to walk up to someone's door and tell them they just lost a loved one," Love said. "When that day comes, it's hard to tell them what they'll witness or what they'll experience. You can only hope that with the amount of training they've received, they'll be able to carry out their duties."
In addition to training casualty notification officers, the program also trains casualty assistance officers who help the family through planning the funeral, receiving benefits and counseling services.
Cooper said it is important for families to know the benefits available to them and how to receive them. He said soldiers receiving the training also can offer that peace of mind to fellow troops.
"They share that knowledge that they will be taken care of," Cooper said. "If they are deployed, they know their families will be taken care of."
Those trained this week at the National Guard also can serve as notification and assistance officers for active duty soldiers.
"It all depends on who's closest," Cooper said. "It's not just a slogan. We really are an Army of One."
Although it is a duty no one looks forward to fulfilling, Love said it is a privilege to be called upon.
"You're representing not only the secretary of the Army, but one of your own - a fallen soldier," he said. "It's an honor for them to do it."