Family members of redeploying Paratroopers assigned to 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division wait patiently for their loved ones to march into Green Ramp at Fort Bragg, N.C., Sept. 11, 2015. The paratroopers returned from a nine-month deployment to Iraq in support of Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command – Iraq during Operation Inherent Resolve. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Mary S. Katzenberger)
A Hero’s Welcome Where the mission ends… and home begins.
THE WAIT Before the engines are heard, there is waiting. Minutes that feel like hours. Hearts full of hope, and quiet prayers. Families stand still. Service members prepare quietly. Everyone knows this moment will never come the same way again.
THE PLANE ARRIVES. Then it happens. The aircraft touches down. And the sound alone tells you they’re home.
