Last Friday fifth grader Kael Lancey headed off to school, thinking it was just a normal school day. Other than doing his normal classwork in his normal classroom, Kael did join all of his fellow students so they could work together on a school project that was scheduled.
Also at the gathering was the school mascot, an eagle. Little did Kael know that the person in the eagle costume was his mother, Sergeant Desiree Lancey, home from a long deployment in Kuwait and visiting the school to surprise Kael.
When Desiree took off the mascot head, her son saw her for the first time in almost a year – and the two were able to enjoy a tearful reunion in front of all of Kael’s classmates.
Desiree and Kael were then able to get a head start on the weekend, leaving school early to enjoy some much-needed time together.
And, Desiree brought some good news home with her. It doesn’t look like she’ll be deployed again, so everyone’s hopeful she’s home for good.