Army dad surprises daughters at school assembly in emotional reunion

An army dad surprised his two daughters at their school with his return after being deployed to the Middle East for almost a year.

Chris Fulton, who has been serving in the military for 18 years, was recently deployed to Iraq. He had previously been deployed for the first time in 2009 during Operation Enduring Freedom, and the second time from 2020 to 2021.

When he returned from deployment this time, Fulton decided to surprise his daughters Layla and Lana, who are students at Gilbert Elementary School in Arizona, according to ABC Phoenix affiliate KNXV-TV .

"I don't know, hopefully the first thing I don't do is cry, but that just might happen," Fulton told KNXV prior to the reunion.

Reflecting on his deployment, he added, "The hardest part [was] leaving my family for a year at a time. That's brutal."

On Monday, the school helped Fulton with his plans.

During an assembly at lunchtime, Fulton stood behind a curtain onstage before he was revealed in front of the students -- including his two daughters.

The girls rushed to the stage after seeing Fulton and broke down in tears while embracing their dad.

Speaking with KNXV, Fulton's wife Jordan reflected on her husband's career and the long deployments.

"It's a necessary sacrifice," she said. "It's hard, you know, for all of us involved, but someone has to do it."