Ride Report posted for Spike

I was contacted by the Commander’s mom Sharon who told me that her son was coming home.  When I asked her his name, I was surprised to find out that I knew this Officer.  He was the XO for the Reserve Center in Alameda when I was trying to get back into the service.  We set it up to meet at the Harley shop in Oakland, where we usually stage for Oakland Airport pick-ups.  It was raining that day so we had 5 bikes, 3 WWR and 2 bikes from the Reserve Center.  We headed over to the airport & were met by Sharon and some family members, as well as some folks from the Reserve Center.  One of which was the present XO.  As the Commander arrived, he was greeted by his family and then by us. 

The local Alameda County Sheriff also joined in on our Welcome Home.  We loaded up our bikes and escorted the Commander on a short, 25 minute ride into the Oakland hills.  While we were on the freeway, mom called in for pizza.  So, when we arrived at the house the pizza was hot & waiting.  Since the Commander outranked us, we had to stay and eat.  The Commander’s first words to me were “well Spike, I see you made it in – how’s it feel to be back in uniform?”  So, it was great to know that he remembered me because he deployed 3 weeks before I reinlisted.  We shared in some pizza, presented him with a 6-pack of beer and our coins and welcomed him home sitting around the dining room table eating pizza.  Welcome Home Commander!