Welcome Home, Army Sgt. Gerry O'Sullivan!

Standing outside his Grayslake home, surrounded by family, friends and firefighters, Army Sgt. Gerry O'Sullivan celebrated his homecoming from an 11-month tour in Afghanistan.

"Being back with my family, it is just so great," he said, pausing to look around at all of the supporters gathered on his lawn. "There are no words to express it."

Most of all, O'Sullivan was welcomed home by his wife, Becky, and their two children, Miles, 5, and Maddie, 3.

O'Sullivan said the kids gave him a big salute when they first saw him. That, and lots of hugs.

O'Sullivan is a firefighter with the Grayslake Fire Department, and he was grateful for the support of his fellow firefighters as well.

"The fire department and my family members all being here, welcoming me back, it is incredible," O'Sullivan said this morning. "It's amazing. I am blessed."

While stationed at a Forward Operating Base in the Kandahar Peninsula in Afghanistan, O'Sullivan said he missed many things from Grayslake.

"Oh yeah! I missed Tastee Freez ice cream and Emil's beer nuggets," he said. "I also missed air conditioning. It was about 115-120 degrees over there."

He was clearly proud of having served his country but said it was a unique experience.

"Afghanistan is a whole other world," he said. "It is one of those things you have to experience. But it makes coming home even better. And then to have this kind of homecoming? It is incredible."

He arrived in Grayslake early Friday morning, surrounded by other firefighters. They drove under a huge U.S. flag firefighters hung from a ladder truck across Center Street, near Seymour Avenue. Then they headed to O'Sullivan's Grayslake home.

"It is just overwhelming," said Becky Burgett O'Sullivan, as she greeted visitors on her lawn. "I haven't processed it yet that he is really home. Everyone here is happy and excited to see him, and so am I."

More than anything, she said she was relieved to have her husband back.

"My initial thought was that we are done," she said. "We will have no more deployments. He will not be gone again. We're done. He's here and everything can get back to normal. I am so happy it is over."

• Read how friends and family reacted to Gerry's homecoming.
• See more photos of the celebration in Gerry O'Sullivan, Home Again.