Army major returns to Middletown family as neighbors welcome him home
Army Major Matt Zilinski embraced his three young daughters and his wife, Brie, at their Middletown home on Saturday after returning safely from a peacekeeping mission in Kosovo.
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Apr 5, 2020, 2:25 AM
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Updated 1,721 days ago
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It was a hug 11 months in the making.
Army Major Matt Zilinski embraced his three young daughters and his wife, Brie, at their Middletown home on Saturday after returning safely from a peacekeeping mission in Kosovo.
Brie Zilinski says she put out a post on Facebook last week to the Middletown community, asking if they would make some welcome home signs.
“I felt bad because they didn't have a ceremony like they usually do. I was just looking for a few signs and it exploded,” she told News 12.
Major Zilinski called the response “awesome” and says it was “great to see the community come out.”
The homecoming took on an extra special meaning since his brother, Army 1st Lt. Dennis W. Zilinski, was killed while serving in Iraq in 2005.
“I know he is looking down," said Dennis Sr. "That's why it's sunny today because the sun is shining right on him."
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