United States Navy petty officer second class Frank “Tommy” Schafer reported for duty at Indian Mills Elementary School last week. This time, though, the duty was not to his country but to his family.
Schafer, deployed most recently in Japan, hasn’t been home for three years. That absence has been hard on his 8-year-old sister Riley Gardner. Conversations through Skype and FaceTime try to fill the void, but the siblings had not seen one another in person since Gardner was 5 years old.
Until Tuesday, June 24.
During a special assembly held for students at Indian Mills, Principal Nicole Moore called Riley, a third-grade student, to the stage to present her with the “Most Surprised Child Award.”
As the crowd of students looked on, a voice that sounded very familiar to Riley could be heard over the loudspeaker reading an essay about a role model that she had written to her brother. It was a school project that challenged students to think of a role model in their lives. Riley picked her big brother.
“As long as I can remember, my brother has always been there for me. He is super brave,” Schaffer read from behind a curtain. “He is giving his life to protect all American families. That why my brother is my role model.”
Riley listened carefully, hearing every word read from her essay. Her studious face quickly turned to one of pure joy as it became strawberry red with tears rushing down her cheeks. Big brother walked out behind the now open curtain.
“When he popped out, it was like, ‘wow,’ I can’t believe he’s here,” Riley said. “Like, it was sort of like an explosion. Because it just like blew up my mind. I never knew he would actually come here.”
Riley ran over, hugged him and buried her face into the chest of her brother.
“I think it went really well,” Schafer said, with an ear-to-ear grin.
Schafer, a 2007 graduate of Lenape High School, said he worked to stay in touch with Riley.
“We’ve always been close,” Schafer said. “She means the world to me. She keeps me going. She inspires me with her drive to succeed in school and soccer as well. It’s pretty rough, you know being away from family, especially a younger sibling. You just strive to get that connection back.”
