KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Blue Springs Korean War veteran finally returned to his old ship after 50 years.
Sound familiar?
We told you about Richard Dent's trip on Memorial Day, but we left out the surprise waiting for him in New Jersey.
"So he just had an unbelievable tour and for me to be right there and see it all was just incredible," said Richard's son, Denton Dent.
As a surprise for his dad, Denton flew up to meet his father aboard the ship.
“Oh man, it’s a beautiful thing," Richard said "Yeah, just absolutely beautiful and I was really glad to get back there and take a look at her again," Richard said of his first few moments aboard his ship.
Through every bulkhead, Richard walked past old memories, especially at his old post.
"That was great. It was just, just what I wanted to see," Richard said.
His strongest memory was of sailing through a minefield and watching a nearby destroyer through binoculars.
"And I seen the back end of this destroyer come out of the water and I thought, 'Oh my gosh,' and it had been hit by a mine," he said. "It's just, I mean I could see it as plain as day again."
Denton says he watched his dad relive those moments, and many other good ones.
"All day long he was just, you know, you could just see him reflecting at every corner," he said.
"It went wonderful, this is probably the most, the greatest experience of my life."
