Hometown Hero Welcome Set for Saturday

Karen Worrell of East Quogue is elated — her young son, David, is coming home from Iraq after a year-long tour of duty and just in time for the Fourth of July weekend.

On Saturday, David will receive a hometown welcome when he flies into Islip’s McArthur Airport at 10 a.m. Greeting him will not only be friends and family, but an army of veterans and public officials, who will present David with a proclamation and escort him to the in Hampton Bays for a celebration.

David will be escorted by not only American Legion Riders, but also by area fire departments.

“We will be at the airport,” said Rich Steiber, director of the 43-strong American Legion riders Post #824. “We want to welcome home soldiers as they ought to be welcomed home.”

Steiber recalled when Vietnam vets came home. “They were spat upon,” he said. “So, when we have a returning active duty soldier, we want to make sure we have the best possible turn out and get the community involved."

Karen says she couldn’t be more excited and can’t possibly thank everyone enough for working to make her son’s homecoming a memorable one.

“I can’t wait to see the look on his face,” she said. “He thinks I’m the only one coming to pick him up at the airport.”

Karen says David, the youngest of her five children, decided to join the army at 17, just months before he graduated high school.

“I’m not sure why he wanted to join,” said Karen. “Maybe it was all the shoot 'em up video games he played.”

Karen said that while she hoped her son would change his mind, she and her husband supported him every step of the way, even signing recruitment papers before David turned 18.

“It was something he really wanted to do, and we told our other children to support him as well,” said Karen.

Once enlisted, David was assigned to security detail for the fourth brigade, third infantry division. He has been serving in Iraq since July 2010.

Speaking of her son, Karen says David has always been very helpful, laid-back and easy going.

“I got some comments from high up in the military and they had nice things to say about him, which doesn’t surprise me,” she said.

Karen says her son will be home for a few months before heading back, but she said her son is hoping to become a helicopter pilot.