Soldier returns home, surprises daughter at school

It’s a homecoming a first-grader in Blackfoot will never forget. A soldier who’s been serving overseas surprised his daughter at school Friday.

“Just to see her expression,” he said. “Her face was well worth all the struggles we’ve gone through. I was at least able to hold back some tears.”

Khloee Young thought the only thing going on at her school, Stoddard Elementary, was a patriotic assembly where her class sang songs for the parents. What she didn’t know was that her dad, Steven Young, was there to surprise her. He’s in the Air Force and is stationed in South Korea.

“I missed him, because I love him,” Khloee said.

“I’m grateful for my wife, because I can’t do what I do without her sacrifice,” Steven Young said. “And I know how much that sacrifice is. This isn’t the only time she’s done it. I’ve been on five deployments, and she’s been there for three of them, and it’s a significant sacrifice that I don’t think a lot of people realize and understand. And the same sacrifice my kids feel during that time.”