Sgt. Joshua Ricafrente returned home from Afghanistan early to surprise his kids during halftime of the ECU game this weekend.
What a great surprise.
You’ve gotta love the crowd chanting “USA! USA!” in the background.
The East Carolinian has the back story:
Elijah and Noah Ricafrente never saw what was coming when they came to ECU for the home game against Houston. After being invited to attend the game with their Pop Warner youth football team, the boys were excited to be chosen to participate in the Power-Aid toss during halftime.
Noah and his brother stood in awe at the proud Pirate fans, wishing their father could share that moment. Little did they know that the biggest surprise of all was soon to arrive.
“The oldest boy looked at one of my assistants and said, ‘My dad would love this crowd. I wish he was here,’” said Scott Wetherbee, assistant athletics director for marketing and ticket operations.
Noah and Elijah’s father, Sgt. Joshua Ricafrente, had been deployed in Afghanistan for the past five months. When Ricafrente found out he was coming home early, the plan to surprise his sons was set in motion.
“I was set to come home about a week or so earlier. I spoke to their Pop Warner football coach,” said Ricafrente. “I thought that it would be cool if we could set something up and surprise them at the game.”
Read the rest here.