Sailors Come Home for the Holidays

Home for the holidays – sailors from the USS Dallas returned to Connecticut today and were greeted by laughter and tears of joy.

One got to meet his four-month-old daughter for the first time.

“It was special,” said sailor Sebastian Lefever. “I’ve seen her on Facebook and stuff like that for the last four-and-a-half months but it’s great to be hone and see her.”

Each family has a story and have been finding their own ways to cope with a long deployment.

“Now that it’s all over, it doesn’t seem hard at all,” said Stevi Bramich, the wife of a recently returned sailor. “But during the deployment it was difficult. I had just moved up here maybe six months before and didn’t know anybody.”

But with long hugs, big smiles and bouquets of roses, those six months at sea drew to a close.

“It is a long time to be stuck underwater but now that we’re back it feels good to up here and see good old Groton again,” said Carney McGeehan of the USS Dallas. “I never thought I’d miss this place so much. It feels darn good to be back!”

McGeehan’s parents and girlfriend made the trip from Lancaster, Penn. to welcome him home.

Ed McGeehan, his father, choked back tears as he hugged his son.

“I’m speechless, I’m so proud of him,” Ed McGeehan said. “We’re extra thankful for Thanksgiving this year.”

And that’s a feeling shared by many.

Contact Us