I always thank people for thinking of us when they thank me for my service. It works.
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Does welcome home stuff really matter?
- Thread starter villanelle
- Start date
After reading several more of these posts, I started to think of the reception I got coming back from the Army tour compared with my previous Navy deployments. The greatest part to returning from Afghanistan were all of the civilians at BWI wearing red, white, and blue. They cheered as we all exited the aircraft. Some handed us goodie bags. In all, it was quite the welcome. On our connecting flight through Newark, we got off the plane to 5 or 6 of NY's Finest, saluting us as we deplaned. Heading to the bar (across from our connecting gate), we couldn't buy our own drink. A Southwest Airlines pilot threw down $40. Another couple threw down $20. It was truly great to be home. When we arrived at our final destination (Norfolk), there was next to nothing. The one person waiting for us was a duty driver, who informed us that we'd have to wait another hour for a different aircraft to arrive before heading to base. We had been traveling for well over 24 hours and we had to wait just to go home?? After the reception made for us from the civilian side, it really was a kick in the junk to have the Navy "welcome" us back.
My wife and I came back through BWI on Space A with a group from the Army who were returning from deployment. They funneled us in so that we had to go through the returning celebrations. It was really awkward walking with a bunch of guys returning from 6-12 months of deployment since my wife and I were just hitching a ride after a week vacation in Italy. One thing I remember though is that none of those guys could help but smile.
20 nov 1970,
i remember waiting to board a 747 (must have been one of the first) at LAX for JFK. had my uniform on with all my brand new vietnam ribbons. as i recall, i was just another passenger. don't remember thinking about it much. since then, it seems half the viet vets i talk to say they were spit on and called 'baby killer'. gimme a break.
worst part of the following year was my collateral duty as a casualty assistance officer. i remember notifying about 12 families (mostly rural south carolina black families) that their sons had been killed in combat.
i was 24 that year and drank a lot.
these days i do a little work at a local vet's hospital coordinating a PTSD support group for the iraq/ afghan guys.
i knew i was accepted when i was told,
"Col. Flanagan, you're just as fucked up as we are."
ya needa give back. its not all about us.
i remember waiting to board a 747 (must have been one of the first) at LAX for JFK. had my uniform on with all my brand new vietnam ribbons. as i recall, i was just another passenger. don't remember thinking about it much. since then, it seems half the viet vets i talk to say they were spit on and called 'baby killer'. gimme a break.
worst part of the following year was my collateral duty as a casualty assistance officer. i remember notifying about 12 families (mostly rural south carolina black families) that their sons had been killed in combat.
i was 24 that year and drank a lot.
these days i do a little work at a local vet's hospital coordinating a PTSD support group for the iraq/ afghan guys.
i knew i was accepted when i was told,
"Col. Flanagan, you're just as fucked up as we are."
ya needa give back. its not all about us.
I will remember every homecoming I've had so far. My favorite part of the big squadron homecoming after my first deployment wasn't the big hoopla and ceremony they had for us in Jacksonville but being greeted by the folks in Bangor, Maine our first stop state-side. You couldn't help but smile when there were 15 or 20 folks standing there at 5AM cheering for you and shaking hands. The reception and the first cup of Green Mountain coffee and a lobster omelet for breakfast made Bangor a favorite place of mine. The pomp and circumstance in Jacksonville later that day was thankfully brief and they let us get on our way home.
My last homecoming I was by myself on a commercial flight. The airline let my wife into the terminal to meet me at the jetway, when she told them what the situation was. A much quieter but still memorable homecoming.
My last homecoming I was by myself on a commercial flight. The airline let my wife into the terminal to meet me at the jetway, when she told them what the situation was. A much quieter but still memorable homecoming.
For others' info, I'm pretty sure all airlines will let spouses through security both coming and going for a pre-9/11 style send off and return.
I will say that the reception in Baltimore was a pleasant surprise that choked me up a bit.
<Thread jack>
I never understood the reasoning for the post 9/11 requirement to have a boarding pass to get through security. I you can get through security you theoritically have shown that you have no illegal objects. You don't have a boarding pass so you can't get on a flight.
Was is just a measure to reduce the amount of people who went through security? If you make an exception for a spouse coming home from deployment, why can't you let a a parent meet a child at the gate after a few months away at college?
</Thread jack>
I never understood the reasoning for the post 9/11 requirement to have a boarding pass to get through security. I you can get through security you theoritically have shown that you have no illegal objects. You don't have a boarding pass so you can't get on a flight.
Was is just a measure to reduce the amount of people who went through security? If you make an exception for a spouse coming home from deployment, why can't you let a a parent meet a child at the gate after a few months away at college?
</Thread jack>
I haven't been deployed yet so I don't really know what it's like coming back, but these hardly seem like they're even in the same ballpark. I get the point you're trying to make (i.e., why one exception and not others) but I think they would have to come up with a better reason than a kid being gone for a semester of college to warrant being an exception to something as strict as airport security these days.
I watched an awesome film about the group in Bangor (I think it ws Bangor) that makes sure every flight arriving back from deployment has a group there to greet them. It was bunch of very senior seniors, and they dedicated so much time and energy to this, and it was really touching.
The fly off for husband's det was today and they had their damn cups in the fence and welcome signs to drive past on their way home. Maybe it didn't mean anything to any of them, but I guess the chance that it did (or that it will) was worth a couple hours of my time.
Now if my husband would just hurry up and get here...
We got the same reception in Bangor, ME when we returned from our sandbox deployment in 2008. It reminded me of the beer commercial where everyone in the airport started clapping for the service members in cammies. I must say that it felt great, especially after that deployment. And this whole time I thought we were special...
When my parents were still living in MD they would every so often go down to BWI for Operation Homecoming. Groups like that are awesome. If I were coming back to the US through an airport that wasn't my home base something like that would probably move me to tears. When I finally make it to the place where my bed is, however, I just want to get there ASAP and have a means to do so.
How would you screen out one and not the other? Dependent ID, maybe, but does that mean only those with spouses and children deserve welcome homes?
MasterBates
Well-Known Member
phrogdriver said:
Would about line up with normal DOD policy.
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