Watch soldier surprise his family at son’s kindergarten graduation after year away

After 362 days of deployment, an Oklahoma Army National Guard soldier returned home — much to the surprise of his unsuspecting family.

Chief Warrant Officer 3 Kelby Cook chose his son’s kindergarten graduation at Washington Elementary School in Washington, Oklahoma, for his long-awaited return. Cook had been deployed in the Middle East since May 2022 as a Blackhawk helicopter pilot.

As the May 18 graduation was concluding, a teacher gave a shout-out to the “incredibly brave” student Kael Cook, who completed his kindergarten year while his dad was overseas.

The teacher was listing the soldier’s accomplishments when Cook rounded the corner of the gymnasium wearing his fatigues.

A shriek can be heard in the video, and a few seconds later Cook’s wife was seen sprinting and jumping into her husband’s arms. Kael was not far behind.

The heartfelt reunion was shared in video by Washington Public Schools.

“362 days later and our soldier is finally home. We did it!” the soldier’s wife, Lexi Cook, said in a Facebook post. “We got the biggest surprise of our lives today when daddy showed up at Kael’s kindergarten graduation this morning.”

Lexi and Kelby Cook have been married for nine years, and she described the past year as the hardest year in her family’s life.

“We were faced with so many challenges, but we overcame them all,” she said. “It was incredibly trying and hard. I’m so thankful that my husband made it back home safe to us. It is truly an answered prayer.”

The surprise was arranged by Kael’s kindergarten teacher, Heather Mann. Lexi Cook described Mann as “the absolute best teacher.”

The Cook family, Mann said, holds “a special place” in the teacher’s heart.

“It was a great honor this morning to help ... Cook create a surprise homecoming for his family after our kindergarten graduation,” she said in a Facebook post.