Cheers, Tears Welcome Back Gloucester Twp. Marine

At 21, Marine Lance Cpl. Jeff Kopp already has experienced more than most, thanks to a seven-month deployment in Afghanistan, where he drove an armored vehicle into the thick of fighting.

But, it was his surprise homecoming celebration, complete with motorcycle, fire truck and police escort, that left him speechless Saturday.

(Click here for a photo gallery of the welcome home celebration.)

Gloucester Township welcomed its returning hero home in style as Kopp traveled back to his Wood Thrush Avenue home, in the town’s Erial section, for a precious few days with family.

Just after 6 p.m. Saturday, the faint sound of fire and police sirens grew steadily louder, joined by the roar of motorcycle engines. As the din of the escort increased, Kopp’s family and friends stood in the street waving American flags and chanting his name.

Amid the enthusiastic cheering, Kopp’s grandmother, Suzanne Hartman, stood with tears streaming. “That’s my boy,” she said smiling broadly.

Kopp, a 2009 Timber Creek High School graduate, returned to the U.S. from Afghanistan in early June. He made a stop in Pennsylvania, where he grew up, before returning to New Jersey yesterday. The escort picked him up from a meal at Don Pablo’s in Deptford. Not until Kopp left the restaurant did he realize that the phalanx of motorcyclists in the parking lot were there to shepherd him home.

Stationed in California, Saturday marked Kopp’s first chance to see many of his loved ones in a year.

“I just had no idea they’d do this,” Kopp said in amazement, as family members vied for a hug. “I’m speechless.”

The Marine used his sunglasses to hide tears as he was presented with proclamations and gifts thanking him for his service from groups including the Nam Knights, Warriors’ Watch and A Hero’s Welcome.

“We know this doesn’t come close to thanking you for what you’ve done for us,” one representative said before embracing Kopp. “Nothing can.”

Kopp’s job as a light armored vehicle driver put him into the center of action in Afghanistan. His unit participated in several key operations, including Operation Raw Hide II. That mission saw Marines taking on heavily armed insurgents in a Bahram Chah. Kopp drove the lead vehicle into the valley.

Although far from his family during the dangerous missions, Kopp, who lives with his aunt, uncle and two young cousins, kept in contact with them online.

“We were able to talk over Facebook and every time he was ready to go out,” said uncle Drew Blagojevic, “I told him I loved him.”

Kopp moved into his aunt and uncle’s Gloucester Township home as a high school senior. He grew up in Western Pennsylvania, but fractured relations with his mother and stepfather brought him to Blagojevic, aunt Kathy Hedrich and cousins Corrine, 8, and Evan, 5. By the time he arrived, midway through senior year of high school, Kopp had already enlisted in the Marines’ delayed entry program.

“It’s just something I always knew I wanted to do,” Kopp said of military service. Recalling his enlistment in September 2008, “I went in (to the recruiter) and told him straight up: ‘If you don’t have an infantry position available, I’m not interested.’ I wanted to be the best. I signed up right there.”

That drive toward service won him the Gloucester Township Meritorious Service Medal on Saturday. He is the third recipient of the medal.

“All too often, we do not understand what our men and women in the armed forces go through in defending the freedoms which we take for granted,” Mayor David Mayer said. “It’s so important as a community that we come together to say thank you and to acknowledge their service.”

A similar idea spurred the creation of the Yellow Ribbon Club, which organizes welcome home ceremonies for returning military forces in Camden, Burlington and Gloucester counties.

“There was a time when our troops weren’t welcomed home with the respect they deserve,” said founder Leslie Drummond as she twisted a ribbon into place. “We’re making sure that never happens again.”

After basking in Saturday’s surprise homecoming, Kopp plans to take a few days to relax with his family, introduce his best friends from Pennsylvania to the delights of the shore and just enjoy his downtime. Then, it’s a cross-country trip back to California, where his unit could soon start preparing for another deployment to Afghanistan.