SHIRLEY — Early Thanksgiving morning, Kevin Hayes Sr. and his wife, Laurel, long-time Shirley residents, had reason to give special thanks as they watched their son, Kevin Jr., arrive home after an eight-month deployment in Al-Anbar province, Iraq.
Lance Corporal Hayes completed the assignment along with the rest of 1st platoon, Echo Company, 2/2, United States Marine Corps and returned to their home base of Camp Lejeune, N.C.
Kevin Jr. will be returning to Camp Lejeune on Dec. 9 but will be home again for the Christmas holidays.
When asked, Kevin Jr. said, “it was great to see his family and friends again” and he is looking forward to spending more time at home over the next holiday leave period.
“I was very proud to have served overseas,” Corporal Hayes said. “It made me feel like I was doing something worthwhile with my life and reminded me of how much we have and how much I love the simple freedoms we all share in the United States.”
Asked about future plans, Kevin Jr. stated “there may be another deployment; if not, once I leave the Marines this fall, it will be college and getting back to a normal life.”
