Soldier Surprises Son At School

Soldier Surprises Son At School

Father Serves Tour Of Duty In Iraq

Clinton and Bradford Baldwin

PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. — A South Florida first-grader got a nice surprise at school on Thursday when his father returned from serving in the military overseas.Every day, 6-year-old Clinton Baldwin wears a yellow pin to Mrs. Rodriguez’s class at Lake Forest Elementary School in Pembroke Park.

“It’s for my dad to come home safe from Iraq,” he said.Clinton said he has thought about his father every day since he first left four months ago to serve in Iraq. While he and his first-grade classmates thought Local 10′s cameras were in their classroom to profile their teacher, Thursday was really about Clinton.Just down the hall waited a big surprise. Clinton’s father, Bradford Baldwin, came to school to tell his son he’s home.”Daddy, I’ve missed you,” Clinton shouted as his father opened the classroom door. “I wore this pin to bring you back.”Their reunion marked the end of Baldwin’s first tour of duty in the front lines.”I’ve missed him for four months and now I’m finally home,” Baldwin said.War wounds run deep for children of soldiers overseas. It appeared that father and son both understood that in battle, returning home is never guaranteed.”It’s scary and it does get lonely, but when you have family behind that you know miss you, that you know care about you and are thinking about you, it makes it a lot easier,” he said.Clinton and his father have a lot of catching up to do. In two weeks, Baldwin will head back to Iraq for his second tour.”Now that I’m going back, I already know what to expect, and I’ve got my family behind me, so I’ll be all right,” Baldwin said.Clinton will hold onto his yellow pin, but for now, he is holding on tighter to his dad.