Paradeside reunion
By Kirsten Ballard
Published in News on November 12, 2014 1:46 PM
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Jim Hobkirk, member of the Guardian Brotherhood, puts on his riding vest in preparation for the Veterans Day Parade on Tuesday. Hobkirk is an Air Force veteran who served at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base for part of his 23-year career. Tuesday's annual march drew crowds of onlookers as well as plenty of support from former and current service members as the nation paused to remember those who serve.
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News-Argus/MELISSA KEY
Isabella Church, 7, embraces her father, Staff Sgt. Robert Church, moments after he surprised her by coming home while she was riding on her Brownie troop float during the Veterans Day Parade.
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News-Argus/MELISSA KEY
G.R. Marshburn, left, and other members of American Legion Post 379 salute and wave to paradegoers.
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Col. Mark Slocum, 4th Fighter Wing commander, salutes the Seymour Johnson Air Force Base color guard at the start of the Veterans Day parade.
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Shelby Radford, 4, Wee Miss Seymour Johnson, prepares for her first time riding in a parade.
Robert Church waits.
It has been more than seven months since he last held his daughter, Isabella, in his arms -- since the two shared an "I love you" in person.
So when the Air Force staff sergeant was granted a 20-day leave from his latest tour to spend Thanksgiving with his family, he decided to make this particular homecoming a memorable one.
Isabella nearly spoiled the plan.
Shortly after she woke up Tuesday, she told her mother, Katie, she did not want to participate in the local Veterans Day parade.
"It's hard being a military kid," Katie said.
But luckily for Robert, the little girl changed her mind and joined the other members of her Brownie troop on a patriotic float.
As the procession made its way through downtown Goldsboro, Isabella had no idea that her father was, all the while, standing on a stage on John Street -- that when he float passed him by, an emotional reveal would unfold.
"Isabella is going to love it," Robert said. "She's totally my kid. I see so much of myself in her."
And when the float, at last, stopped in front of the stage -- when Isabella laid eyes on the man she has missed so much for so long -- it didn't seem to matter that this was his fourth deployment since she was born -- that his service had cost them shared milestones.
In that moment, all she knew was her father was home.
The crowd cheered as Robert climbed into the back of the truck and scooped up a smiling Isabella, before securing her in a bear hug.
Until then, the city's annual Veterans Day parade had all the makings of a typical military town celebration -- patriotic tributes, Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops waving undersized American flags, high school marching bands and ROTC cadets making their way along the route, veterans receiving thank-yous.
But the Church family, with a little help from event organizers, helped to ensure that this year, the celebration that unfolded just a few miles away from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base was special.
Robert will never forget it.
But after the parade, as he made his exit -- his grinning daughter's hand in his -- he returned to the life of a deployed airman on leave for just a few weeks.
It was time, again, to make the most of those moments with Isabella -- and her baby sister, Elliana, who was only 5 weeks old when her father answered his nation's call.
"She's kind of shy," Robert said of Isabella. "But after a few hours, we're like peas and carrots."