Marines get emotional welcome home

ASHWAUBENON, Wis. (WLUK) - During a time of year when gratitude and giving are top of mind, families of eight Marine reservists are grateful their sons and daughter are coming home after giving to the their country in Iraq.

"I get goosebumps," said Bobbie Samme of Spread Eagle, Wis. "I am so proud of our troops and so grateful to them for the sacrifices they make every day."

The Marines, including Cpl. Zackary Hardwick, arrived to a warm welcome.

"We're so excited to have him home," said Cheri Froberg, Hardwick's mother. "It's been a long time. We could talk to him on Facebook which is really nice, but nothing's as good as having him home."

"I'm just happy to be home with all my fellow Marines, glad we made it out of Iraq safe," said Hardwick.

While one mother is welcoming her son, another mother is not. Amid the hugs and kisses is Bobbie Samme. She, like others, drove hours to be here to welcome Hardwick, though she is not related to him.

"Zackary was my son Eric's rack mate they say - roommate - in boot camp in San Diego. My son, Lance Cpl. Eric Palmisano, was killed in Iraq in April of 2006. But he and Zack had become very close friends while they were in boot camp," said Samme.

Bobbie thinks of her son every day, and Wednesday, she did something she never got to do with her own son - wrap her arms around him and welcome him home.

These Marines and their families are grateful to be together. Though her son isn't home, Bobbie Samme is also thankful.

"I'm very very thankful that they're gonna be able to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with their families. That's very important. Even though my son can't be with me physically at the table, we're setting a place for him and he will be with us in our hearts," said Samme.

After his death, Palmisano's family started the "LCpl. Eric A. Palmisano Care Package Project," and has sent nearly a thousand care packages to troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Click here to find out more about the project and Palmisano.