By Danielle Turissini
CHIMACUM — A 23-year-old soldier is back home after 10 months in the Middle East, much to the relief of his mom and dad.
“It’s hard to believe he’s actually home,” Cherie Perry of Chimacum, whose son, Army Specialist Lief W. Kirsch, 23, returned Sunday.
“I’m overwhelmed and relieved to have my son back and to know he’s OK.”
His father, Tim Kirsch of Arizona, said he’s looking forward to talking to him, something he’s missed while Kirsch was away.
Spc. Kirsch, a 1999 graduate of Chimacum High School, received a standing ovation from family and friends at a potluck reception Sunday at Calvary Chapel in Port Townsend.
Kirsch is a maintenance crew chief on an Apache helicopter — what he calls his “bird” — with “The Paleriders” of the 6th Squadron, 6th U.S. Calvary.
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The rest of the story appears in Tuesday’s Peninsula Daily News Jefferson County edition.
