I'm old enough to remember the beginnings of YouTube. I know that sounds funny, but it HAS been 16 years since the iconic social media video site--launched before we even HAD the term "social media"--gave everyone an opportunity to record whatever they wanted and show the world.

In fact, the service kind of became known for cat videos. And I actually wondered, soon after it was up and running, if that was all it was going to be good for...silly and fun videos and not much else. Of course, I was wrong and knew that in short order.

MILITARY FAMILY SURPRISES -- YOUTUBE CLASSICS

It wouldn't take very many years before ANOTHER type of video yielded viral clips on a regular basis...military parents or older siblings returning home and surprising their children or their brothers and sisters, as the case may be. And once you saw ONE of them, you sought out others.

Talk about hours of entertainment, right? You just can't go wrong. What strikes me is that some of the clips in this compilation are so old that some of these kids are probably adults now.

LOUISVILLE MILITARY DAD SURPRISES HIS SON

Again, it never gets old and it's just happened again and this time in Louisville. Joshua Newby is a 7-year-old who plays football for the River City Renegade. He THOUGHT his dad was serving overseas in Africa. He WAS, certainly, but not on this particular day:

 

Jordan Lee Newby serves in the Air Force National Guard and was stationed in Africa beginning in December of 2021. It looks like he decided to withhold his plans to return home from his son.

I support the decision. I think we all do. Obviously, Joshua does, too. It's apparent it will be a very happy Thanksgiving in the Newby household this year.

[SOURCE: WLKY-Louisville]

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