An early homecoming for local Army dad surprises kids at school

It was a holiday homecoming for one Ammon dad in the Army on Friday. KIFI/KIDK’s Taja Davis and KIDK’s Todd Kunz were there to see the reactions of his three kids at Woodland Hills Elementary School.

As Cedar, Savannah and Logan Herrmann were called to the principal’s office — we hid dad. Capt. Shawn Herrmann drove 38 hours from Virginia to home and surprise his kids at school.

“I came from Fort Lee Virginia. I was doing a military school, and I’m off to Korea for a year to be with the 19th Expeditionary Sustainment Command,” said Herrmann.

As we waited for them to arrive, Davis asked what he thought his kids would do when they saw him.

“Uh, no. I don’t think any of them will cry. Savannah will probably be the first one to run up and give me a hug — and Logan, probably one on each side. And Cedar, he’s kind of shy so he kind of may just put his head down,” said Herrmann.

He was spot on with his kids’ reactions aside from the tears. The kids instantly erupted into tears of joy when he walked out.

They thought they might be in trouble being called to the principal’s office, but instead the siblings got the best early Christmas gift they could get: their dad being home.

“I missed you, Dad,” said Logan.

“He got home about 11:20 last night, so the last 40 minutes of my birthday. The kids had already crashed in my room, so he went downstairs and slept in the guest room in the basement and hid his car in another garage,” said Jaymi Herrmann.

“It’s good to be home. You live in a hotel for four months and you get kind of lonely and you miss the kids and you hear all the stories. I get to come home and help out really,” said Shawn Herrmann.

Needless to say, the kids didn’t have plans of letting of him go.

Herrmann will be in town with his family for one month. Then he is off to Korea to serve for one year.