NORWALK, Conn. — A fifth grader at Cranbury Elementary School got an extra reason to celebrate her promotion to middle school Tuesday: her mother, just back from an eight-month deployment, surprised her at the ceremony.
Riley Gildae was one of dozens of students honored at the school’s June 23 promotion event.
Her mother, Sergeant Erica Gildae, served at an undisclosed location as part of Operation Epic Fury. Riley’s father, Airman Brian Gildae, also serves in the Air Force. He was deployed earlier under Operation Southern Spear and told NancyOnNorwalk that the family’s home base is in New Mexico.
“I was nervous. I was hoping all day to see my kids,” Erica Gildae said before the reveal. She said she did not expect the moment to become as big as it did.
She said being away from her two daughters for eight months was hard, but the distance gave her perspective.
“To be away for eight, nine months is not easy, but they are stronger than me,” she said. “I was more emotional. She is actually the soldier. She is the bravest.”
Brian Gildae said it was difficult for the family when both parents were deployed at the same time, but their daughters adjusted. Staying with their grandparents in Norwalk, he said, gave the family peace of mind while he and his wife were both away.
“We had a care plan, and my parents were able to take great care of them,” he said.
Brian Gildae said he returned from his own deployment in February, ahead of his wife. He grew up in Norwalk and graduated from Norwalk High School before joining the Air Force.
The family’s home base is now in New Mexico, and he said the plan is to bring the whole family back there once they are reunited.
“We could live our lives as we were before,” he said.
Erica Gildae, who is originally from Brazil, said she has served in the Air Force since 2020 and was drawn to the military out of gratitude for the opportunities the country gave her.
“This country gave so much to me, so I always had the dream to give back,” she said. “Freedom doesn’t come for free.”
She said her husband joined the Air Force after she did, following her path once he saw the people and purpose behind her work.
Cranbury Principal Dr. Jennifer Masone helped coordinate the surprise after Erica Gildae reached out asking about extra tickets to the ceremony.
“She said, ‘Have you ever seen those things on TV where they surprise people?’” Masone said. “We just started to plan from there. It certainly involved a few phone calls over the past few weeks, and it evolved into the amazing moment that took place today.”
Masone said very few people at the school knew the surprise was coming. She told teachers the night before so they could be present for it.
“She had no idea,” Masone said of Riley. “It was a surprise for our families, for our teachers.”
Masone said it was the first surprise homecoming she had been part of, though she was not certain whether it was the first for the district.
Asked whether she would be proud if her daughters chose to follow in her footsteps one day, Erica Gildae did not hesitate.
“Oh, I would be very proud,” she said. “It would not matter which branch they picked, as long as they were doing something to give back to the country,” she added.
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