Air Force Captain Gets Help from Firefighters To Surprise Age 3 Son After 6-Month Deployment

By Amanda Thomason March 17, 2019 at 9:42am

Being away from your family for extended periods of time is difficult, no matter what the circumstances are. When you leave young ones, you miss major milestones and worry you won’t be there when they need you.

Reunion videos have been and probably will continue to be popular among the masses, as the pure joy and love illustrated in them is touching, especially for those who have experienced such separations and reunions themselves.

According to Fox News, one military dad coming back from a six-month deployment wanted to make his reunion with his 3-year-old son, Connor, extra memorable, so he connected with the local fire station.

Manny Lamson is a U.S. Air Force Caption and weapons system officer out of Dyess Air Force Base. He’d been in Qatar for six months, and as anyone with a toddler knows, a lot can change in six months.

Abilene Fire Department in Texas was more than willing to help him out, so they drove up to the Lamson home in a fire truck, lights blazing and firefighters pouring out.

“Hey buddy!” one firefighter said as he walked over to the little boy. “How are you?”

Connor, starstruck, shook the firefighter’s hand, and then stretched up to talk to him, getting as close to his ear as possible to be heard above the roar of the vehicle.

The firefighter invited the boy to check out the firetruck, and the 3-year-old shook hands and bumped fists with the other firemen as he went.

One man hoisted the kiddo up into the driver’s seat and the boy automatically put his hands on the steering wheel, beaming the entire time.

Then they asked him if he wanted to meet another firefighter, and opened a door to let a firefighter in full gear climb out. The boy watched, reaching out to shake this new firefighter’s hand as the man crouched down to Connor’s eye level.

The man started peeling off his gear until his face was revealed, and Connor melted into his father’s arms. The little boy couldn’t get enough and kept hugging his dad as if trying to make up for all the hugs he’d missed over the past few months.

“Welcome home Captain Manny Lamson from a 6 month deployment at Qatar Air Base,” the Abilene Fire Department wrote in the caption of the Facebook video on Tuesday, March 12.

“He is a part of the 9th Bomb Squadron at Dyess as a Weapons System Officer on the B1. Since his son loves firefighters we got the opportunity to welcome him home in style! Thank you for your service Lamson family.”

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