20 Jun 2017 Editor’s Note July ’17: Welcoming home Daddy

During one of my family’s regular pilgrimages to Pensacola Beach, Fla., several years ago, I came across a unique piece of art that spoke to my heart.

A series of sculptures depicting a family, the artwork needed no explanation. It represented an event that I had personally experienced. Except for the fact that it was missing a couple of statues of my sisters and I don’t have a brother, it could have illustrated a moment in my life.

My sisters and I are part of a special group that was often referred to as “military brats” when we were growing up. Growing up in St. Joseph, Mo., Dad enlisted in the Navy to see the world. It was the military that brought him to New Iberia, La., where he met and married my mother.

Our military life included other stops, including Midway Island in the North Pacific, Moffett Field in California and Corpus Christi, Texas. With less than two years until he completed his 20 years in the Navy, he received orders to Whidbey Island, Wash. (Making the trip from South Texas to the Pacific Northwest in winter was quite an experience, but one for another time.)

While in Washington, Dad and his unit left on short trips, which led to a major deployment or “cruise,” as it was called, in 1975 aboard the USS Coral Sea. I don’t know that my sisters and I really understood what was involved at the time. We just knew that Dad was gone for many months, missing Christmas and our birthdays.

We held our breath and said our prayers when Dad’s ship was called in to action to assist in the Mayaguez incident, which lengthened the deployment. It was a very scary time. We only breathed a slight sigh of relief when the base began making plans for their homecoming.

We kept ourselves busy, making signs and posters to welcome Dad and his unit. On base, when the hour finally arrived, I remember searching among the other families reunited with their loved one, until I finally found Daddy. I threw my arms around his neck, my tears making spots on his uniform. I did not want to let go.

I will never forget that feeling or that day.

Today, military homecomings are captured on video and shared on social media and news shows. I’m moved to tears when I watch them and remember when Mom, my sisters and I welcomed home Dad.

My heart breaks when I consider the military families who have a very different homecoming when their loved one has made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our country.

This month, 501 LIFE celebrates and salutes those men and women who have served and are serving in our military so we can enjoy the freedoms we have in the U.S. We thank them and their families for their service.

Until next month, here’s to honoring our veterans and “Loving LIFE” in the 501.