Six family members who served together during a military deployment to Kuwait returned home to South Dakota over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
Brothers Tyler, Trent, and Tyson Vogt served alongside their cousins Cory Vogt, Jessie Vogt, and Wade Wright in the 155th Engineer Company.
The unit was deployed to Kuwait for 10 months to complete construction projects at bases across the Middle East, Aberdeen News reported.
Sen. John Thune (R., S.D.), along with other state leaders, welcomed home the more than 160 soldiers who served in the company Saturday.
"Even though there were a bunch of us in the unit not related by blood, we’re all one big family," Wright said. "At the same time, it is nice to have your relatives there with you — it makes everything a little more special."
Wright’s wife told Aberdeen News that several of the relatives were driven to enlist after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
Wright also had two additional cousins on the other side of the family who served with the 155th unit. He reunited with his 2-year-old daughter Saturday.
"It was a great experience being away, and I loved being with my family, but I have family at home, too, and I missed them more than you’d believe," he said.