Student surprised when dad returns home

A Lewiston High School student had no idea he was going to be surprised at school by his father, who had been deployed for the last several months, WMTW reports.

Caleb Lussier, 15, a sophomore in the Junior ROTC program said all he knew Tuesday morning was that there would be a guest speaker at an assembly. Everyone was told the speaker's name couldn't be released because it was classified information.

Then, Lussier's father, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Richard Lussier walked through the door. He had just returned from a five-month deployment to Afghanistan.

'I had no idea when I heard them say classified. They usually tell us who the guest speaker is,' said Caleb.

'I was very happy with the reception. I thought he was going to say, 'Hey old man,' said Lussier

Caleb's dad has actually been home since last Thursday, but he wanted to save the surprise until Tuesday's assembly. The biggest challenge was keeping it a secret. Caleb's entire family was in on the surprise.

'I have been at my daughter's the last two days," said Lussier. 'Sunday was the hard day. Kind of texting back and forth, 'we have to stall him. We have to stall him,'' said Caleb's mother, Caren Lussier.

Richard Lussier said he decided to re-enlist in the Air Force at the age of 49, 20 years after his first tour of duty.

He said it was not easy being away from Caleb, who has autism.

Richard Lussier said the Junior ROTC program has given his son new opportunities.

Caleb's dad is home until further notice, and Caleb said he is looking forward to catching up and spending time with his hero.