Army officer surprises daughter at school after 6 months away

COLCHESTER, CN - (WTIC/CNN) - Life can sometimes be seen as a collection of moments.

At Jack Jackter Intermediate School in Colchester, CN, Lieutenant Colonel Gordon Moon of the United States Army got a lasting one.

“I haven't seen them in six months," Moon said before surprising his little girl. "I've been gone since April. I had three days kind of break in the middle and I wanted to come and see my family."

Moon has given the last 32 years of his life to the Army. He’s currently stationed in Kuwait, but he's home now on temporary duty and has three days to spend with his wife and kid.

“I thought it`d be nice to see my daughter," Moon said.

With a single red rose in hand and a full heart, Moon prepared himself for another one of life's moments.

Principal Elise Butson helped set the stage for the reunion as part of her school’s Veterans Day celebration.

“He wasn`t due back to come until December, so his daughter is going to be completely surprised,” Butson said before the ceremony. “She doesn`t expect to see her father until Christmas time.”

After hours on a plane and what probably felt like an endless car ride, Moon happily traveled thousands of miles for this moment.

He walked into the gymnasium, the entire school seated in the bleachers to his right. He glanced his eyes over the crowd in search of a familiar face.

As it turns out, his daughter’s eyes found him first. She raced from the bleachers and leaped into his arms with her eyes full of tears.

The Moon family will be together for the next few days. Before leaving the ceremony, they snapped a picture together.