USS Springfield welcomed home in Groton with some surprises
The clouds lifted a bit and the heat dropped as the USS Springfield returned to base on Thursday afternoon for a warm homecoming in Groton.
Under the tent fly gathered families that hadn't seen fathers since January. One woman held a sign reading, "one less lonely girl" and another sign read, "best day ever".
After six months at sea the crew watched the traditional first kiss then the first hug, with a son who started walking two weeks after the last time his father, Chris Caldwell, saw him.
Some of the wives were able to visit when the submarine visited European ports, and one couple made the most of it a few months ago.
Amy Yantis explained, "We were trying for a long time so we got, we really got blessed in Scotland and so, definitely excited to tell him!"
To tell him he's going to be a father she held a sign in front of her, hoping he'd read the whole thing, and he made it to the bottom where it said he'd be a dad.
"She's always pulling stuff like this on me!" said Charles Yantis. "I've never been a crier but I'm trying to keep that a way down inside and this is amazing. I couldn't be happier to come home to such a thing."
