Welcome Home Robert!

It was a long trip for this Spc & his family. After 15 months in Iraq he returned home to his wife & son in Italy which is where he is stationed. For his leave they were to fly back to the USA to spend time with family & friends whom they hadn't seen in over two years. A normally long flight was made longer by delays so he arrived a day later than expected. So the planned Homecoming Celebration had to be split up during the day & evening. His flight arrived early afternoon & a few of the Patriot Guard Riders (PGR) were there to meet him along with many members of his family. The PGR escorted Soldier & family to parents home about 50 min away without traffic. There was a large crowd waiting for him when he arrived. Did I mention this was a surprise? I was unable to be at the airport or do the escort but we picked up the party later in the evening.

We left the house right after Steve got home & headed to the address we were given which was the sister of the Soldier. A large crowd was already there....friends, neighbors, family, Blue Star Moms, Operation SAM, VFW, American Legion plus the Lafayette Flag Brigade had the giant flag up. And the Vice Mayor from the city too as well as TV reporter. It was absolutely awesome to see the fire truck pull up. Then we heard the bikes....here comes our Hero! He was totally shocked when he got out of the SUV to see that more people were there to honor him. He either hugged or shook the hang of everyone there. Another great Mission! You really should do one of these...you'll be hooked too.