Welcome home!
Servicemen return from Middle East deployment
Wisconsin National Guard soldiers return home from 10-month deployment in time for Memorial Day.
Staff Sgt. Dan Craft leaned toward the cherubic face of his 8-month-old daughter and breathed in.
Clad in a blue and white checked dress adorned with tiny stars, Lyndsey Craft eyed the stranger who is her dad as a couple of hundred other families around them hugged and kissed in the hangar of the 128th Air Refueling Wing at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport.
They had seen each other before but only on computer screens. Lyndsey Craft was born a couple of months after her father deployed to the Middle East with 1st Battalion, 121st Field Artillery.
Before the first of two charter planes landed at the airport Thursday afternoon, Sam Craft held her 3-year-old daughter, Sydney, in one arm and Lyndsey in the other. They had driven from their home in Marshfield for the longawaited homecoming.
“I think he’s going to be emotional,” Sam Craft said of her husband. “Happy. Excited.”
More than 350 Wisconsin National Guard soldiers left the state in July and after training at Fort Bliss, Texas, they began arriving overseas by late August and early September. The unit operated high-mobility artillery rocket systems in 15 locations spread across Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Jordan, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
On Friday, the rest of the unit is scheduled to return to Milwaukee, in
time for soldiers and their families to celebrate Memorial Day.
A few hours before the planes touched down, a steady stream of vehicles began flowing into the military base side of the airport — some sporting slogans on rear windows like “Get Out Of Our Way Our Soldier Comes Home Today!”
Jenny Workman brought a sign for her daughter, 1st Lt. Mary Workman, that said simply “Welcome Home Mary!” The exclamation point featured an apple. Her daughter was in charge of a group of medics.
“She’s my youngest and we’re similar. We always say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” said Workman, of Kenosha.
Carl and Brenda Heard of Milwaukee waited for their daughter, Pfc. Rachel Ellis, a University of Wisconsin-Whitewater psychology and criminology major who will be a senior next year.
“At first we were on pins and needles after she left. For 10 months it has been nerve-wracking, but I’m glad she’s finally coming back,” said Carl Heard.
Said Ellis’ mother, Brenda Heard: “I’ve had the flag up ever since she left. I didn’t sleep last night, I’ve been so nervous. Even though I saw her on FaceTime, I can’t wait to hold her in my arms.”
Some families clutched bouquets of flowers for their loved ones; many brought signs — “Welcome Home Blake We Are Proud of You,” “It’s OK Daddy, I’m Right Here” and “Welcome Home Uncle Jason.” Several wore red, white and blue clothing or T-shirts emblazoned with “Army Dad” and “Army Mom.”
As the first charter plane taxied up to the hangar, folks lifted babies, signs and cell phones high in the air. The crowd clapped, whooped and hollered as the first soldiers began to walk down the steps from the plane, and two fire engines sprayed water in the air in a salute.
Ellis hugged her family as her father wiped tears from his eyes. They posed for photos as Ellis beamed.
“Seeing all my family — that’s the highlight,” said Ellis, who admitted she was looking forward to getting her hair done and eating home-cooked food. “It was rough, but I was able to talk to my family whenever I had a problem.”
Christine Cody of Star Prairie held a bouquet of white carnations, red roses and blue hydrangeas for her daughter, Sgt. 1st Class Kerri Cody, who was on her first overseas deployment.
This Memorial Day, “I’m just thankful for all who served. Her brother is in the National Guard and has been to Iraq, and he’s getting ready to go again,” said Cody.
“Now that she’s home, I can give her a hug and a kiss. They don’t get that overseas,” Cody added.
Dan Craft found his wife and children in the crowd and picked up his older daughter as she clung to him for several long minutes.
“She doesn’t want to let go,” said Sam Craft. Then Dan Craft held his youngest daughter, whose birth he watched via Skype, and watched grow from an infant to the blue-eyed toddler who shyly held her hand out to touch his face.
“Video chatting just doesn’t do it justice,” Dan Craft said. “I’ve got the next month and a half off and I’m sure we’ll spend them building a relationship.”
Dan Craft kissed Lyndsey’s face, then he exhaled.
“At first we were on pins and needles after she left. For 10 months it has been nerve-wracking, but I’m glad she’s finally coming back.” Carl Heard