Soldiers return from Kuwait to heartfelt homecoming

MINDEN, La. ( KTAL/KMSS ) – Camp Minden welcomed soldiers home after they served in Kuwait for several months.

The Haughton Police Department joined with other agencies, including the Haughton Police Department, State Police, Camp Minden Police, and Webster Parish Police, to create a warm welcome for soldiers returning to Louisiana from months deployed in the Middle East.

Most importantly, soldiers were cheered on by their families and loved ones, holding signs excited that their troops were home safely.

“I’m so excited I could just shout. He’s been gone for like 10 months, and we are so, so excited to have him home. We don’t even know how to act,” said Nancy James along with her husband and daughter welcoming home Sergeant Ardarius James.

Nancy said months away from her son were challenging, but she looked to God for strength.

“I had a lot of moments I was kind of having breakdowns or whatever, but I always trust in God that he will be able to bring me through all this. All of this- to today. So yes, that’s all you have to do is trust in God that he can carry you through whatever you have to go through; he will do it for you,” said Nancy James.

Sergeant Ardarius James hugged his family and said he looked forward to eating good food.

“I’m just happy, happy to be home. It was a long ten months but, you know it was fun I met a lot of people, we did a lot of great things for our country, but I’m glad to be home to my family,” said the sergeant.

Officer Patrick Edmonds with the Haughton Police Department said the event was overwhelming. He said he felt a wave of emotions seeing people reunite with family and felt the same way after serving in the National Guard.

“We stayed a total of 11-12 months. That’s without kissing them, hugging them. Without feeding them breakfast in the morning, simple stuff. Coming back seeing your family is very emotional. You get overwhelmed sometimes, said Edmonds.

One emotional sergeant was Garyiel Hayes, who still had a four-hour journey back to Baton Rouge to surprise her family, who thought she was coming back in July.

“My mom is going to cry her eyes out. I’m going to cry too. I was already crying seeing other people with their families like it was so touching, it was so beautiful,” said Hayes.

Like many soldiers, Hayes says the experience changed her for the better. She met new people and began her own personal journey with God.

“We go through a lot during those nine months. We have to like continue our mission even when we feel down, and it’s hard to do that sometimes. It was a long nine months,” said Hayes.

The sergeant says she is not done yet, as she will be traveling to Poland in 2025 for another nine-month deployment. For now, she is just looking forward to getting home.

Sergeant James will be going back to LSU and then going to med school.

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