A “military brat” mom who would always get emotional watching homecoming reunion videos was asked by her airman son to help create one of her own.
When Keynan, an airman with the United States Air Force, was due to return home, he asked his mom, Lyndsey, to help arrange a series of surprise reunions.
Lyndsey, who lives near Bloomington, Indiana, was more than happy to help, as seeing such reunion videos had extra significance to her.
Having been raised as a “military brat” herself, Lyndsey, whose father was in the Air Force, lived on different bases and in a variety of countries during her childhood.
As a result, she would always get emotional when watching military reunions on social media, and so she knew just what to do when Keynan gave her the assignment.
Over a few days between December 23 and 25, Lyndsey collected her son from a local airport, before he was able to carry out a series of emotional surprises.
There were heartfelt reunions with the likes of his grandmothers and girlfriend, family friends and aunt.
Lyndsey called on the help of Keynan’s dad and his girlfriend’s mom to capture some of the videos she used in her final edit, which she then posted on social media.
Lyndsey said: “I lived on different bases and in different countries throughout my childhood, but never experienced a parent or family member going on deployment for a significant amount of time.
“But seeing that community and the love for their family members and friends is just so touching.
“To me these videos show people experiencing some of their best surprises ever – it’s that authentic, candid, and visceral reaction that gets me.
“When Keynan said he wanted to come home to surprise everyone, I knew we had to do something.
“Watching my family’s reactions was nothing short of moving.
“It was emotional to see them all, who love him so deeply, in such raw, authentic moments of surprise and joy.
“Each person’s reaction was unique, but all of them were filled with genuine love and affection for Keynan.”
