Thanksgiving Homecoming Stories

Here are a few memorable reunion stories that will warm your heart for the holidays.

This Thanksgiving, as hands clasp around the nation’s tables, there will be plenty of thanks and grace to go around. But for many people, a meaningful get-together wasn’t as simple as a quick drive, or commercial flight. Let’s look back at their poignant reunions and see what they had to be grateful for.

Stephen Kraus

This prankster of a staff sergeant likes making an entrance. After serving overseas, he secretly returned home earlier this November and gave his two unsuspecting daughters a big surprise as he jumped out a box at their school.

Dollie Henson

Oakland’s Henson (her given name), whose real family had long been a mystery to her, saw them again for the first time in this many years. Her daughter took the right steps to put an end to the mystery. By Nov. 2009, she found  more family members to be thankful for.

Lavette Gonzalez and Jaqueline Easley

This mother-daughter duo reunited far from the family hearth for Thanksgiving ‘08. The women (both in the military) devised a high-flying plan to see each other for the holiday.

The Villalpando Brothers

It’d been four years since any of these enlisted brothers — whose nickname matches a military movie  — celebrated Thanksgiving together at home. The youngest and oldest enjoyed the holiday together in 2008, while sending love overseas to the middle brother.

Alley Doyle and Family

The Doyles reunited at home in Nov. 2007 — youngest daughter, Gwen, had been living with family in Georgia for a year as their oldest, Alanna, struggled with a rare disease that required extensive treatments. Once together, they shared another reason for giving thanks — a baby brother named Sean.

Jordan and Jada Davis

These identical Texan twins were separated when Jada’s health scare (which sometimes goes by this name) required her hospitalization, but were reunited for a 2006 Thanksgiving in their newfound home.

Thomas Sutherland

The Bay Area’s Thomas Sutherland had a momentous homecoming in 1991, after being held hostage overseas. Having eaten only a meager diet for years, the former educator most looked forward to this dish.