MANSFIELD — Families eagerly awaited the return of their loved ones Wednesday afternoon at the 179th Airlift Wing base.
“Hurry up, daddy,” one child exclaimed while holding a welcome home sign in her hands.
Approximately 20 members of the 179th Airlift Wing, the local unit of the Ohio Air National Guard, returned Wednesday after deployment to the Middle East in February.
“It was very rewarding, very challenging,” Lt. Col. Kevin Wuebker said.
Wuebker, a pilot from Troy, Ohio, said he’s fortunate to be able to live out his “dream job.”
“I always wanted to be a military pilot,” he said. “Now I have the great opportunity to serve our nation.”
The downside is being away from his wife Rachel and three young daughters, each of whom greeted him with a hug, kiss and some balloons upon his return.
“If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be able to do this,” he said.
