GREAT BEND, Kansas -- Blaine, Bryce, and Brynn Mermis, all who attend Eisenhower Elementary in Great Bend, got the surprise of a lifetime Friday.
At an assembly to celebrate no tardiness, an unbeknownst arrival was about to appear.
"We have a visitor here at Eisenhower who has come a very long way."
As the kids sat with their peers waiting to see who the special visitor was, a voice came over the speaker that sounded familiar.
"I would like to congratulate you all on no tardies. Thirty-seven Dad!"
After nearly a year overseas, Tyler Mermis returned home early from his deployment to Africa.
"As soon as they opened the curtain, my oldest boy I saw him, he looked right at me so it was pretty good," said Tyler.
A surprise of a lifetime, a year in the making.
"I started to cry. I missed my dad so much, and I wanted him to come home."
Tyler says he and the kids are planning to spend the weekend at one of his son's basketball tournaments.
