Heroes welcome heroes at WPAFB event

Capt. Jeremiah Marquez met his wife, Jillian, on an Air Force base in Utah.

“I got an email from Jeremiah Marquez wanting to know if I would go out on a date with him and, before I knew it, we were getting married,” Jillian Marquez said Thursday.

Since then, the Air Force couple has flown, fought and won their way through three deployments while raising their 3-year-old son Christian.

“I can’t get enough of my young son and wife… it’s really a job to be back,” Marquez said. His came home from his most recent, eight-month deployment to Afghanistan in April.

“It’s still hard,” said Jillian. “He’s still my other half, just like any other marriage or partnership. I still need him, just like any other wife.”

Thursday night, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base hosted a “Heroes Welcoming Heroes” event to welcome the airmen home and acknowledge the courage it takes, not only to serve your country, but to support your loved ones when they do.

“This is just a small token of the appreciation we have for what they have done for our country,” said Col. John Devillier, 88th Air Base Wing Commander.

Families filled their plates, danced to a live band and took comfort in the fact that, when the next deployment comes, they have the strength and support to make it through that one, too.

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