As we have journeyed with John these past 5 years, I have often stood back to watch him and his interaction with the world only being able to see half of the world we all take for granted. I want to see what he sees, I want to take in all he is feeling, seeing and experiencing because I believe he experiences life on a whole different level than we do. Not a diminished level, but an outlook our world needs to take a moment to enjoy. 

On the early morning of February 11, and I say it was EARLY (1:00AM), a group of men and women from Anchorage took John into a whole different world. What this little boy and his sister, really all of us and the whole airport, experienced was a trip to the world of Star Wars! They were transported to a place where the characters they had seen on TV was now within their reach. The Ted Stevens Anchorage Airport was not a place to start the journey to the hospital and separation of our family, but a place that became the start of our family making memories. 

The 501st Alaskan Garrison - Aurora Borealis, Alaskan Droid Builders, The Galactic Academy Moraband School of Alaska, and Rebel Legion Denali Outpost came to the airport to surprise John and wish him well on a trip that we all will never forget. These men and women gave of their sleep, time, and precious moments with friends and family to come to meet us and bring a smile to all of us. We got to experience something that will be a once in a lifetime opportunity brought to us by amazing people whom we had never met before that evening. 

A couple of weeks prior to this trip, John’s teacher at school had him list out his favorite Star Wars Character to which he replied “R2D2”. Me and Julie were aware of this group coming (we thought maybe one or two), but we never imagined the many people who came out especially bringing R2D2. I had told Julie there is NO WAY that an Android would make an appearance and boy were we wrong. I heard the beeps and sounds only to be shocked they made this happen. 

To see the smile on John’s face and amazement in Jo’s eyes, when the ones they had seen on TV were in person greeting them. We were celebrities walking through the airport to the furthest gate for all to see. We felt special in a way that is truly indescribable. They stayed with us until our plane left almost two hours later (3:00AM). They did this for us which we still can’t truly understand why for perfect strangers. Some had to work in the next few hours, many had worked a long day, but they insisted that this was John’s day and it was for him! 

To each person who came out to airport and made this happen, THANK YOU for giving us the most memorable start to a trip we will never be able to create again. Even as many of you were behind a mask, I hope you had a smile on your face and joy in your heart knowing you created a moment in time that will never be forgotten. Thank you for the video so we can go back and watch it many times to experience the shear excitement we felt that evening.