Soldier Drove For Hours Just To Get His First Salute From Grandfather

Jan 17, 2024

Whenever there are special occasions, it’s best if the family is complete so the person celebrating a big milestone can share wonderful moments and memories with the people they love the most.

However, due to certain circumstances like old age, not everyone can make it to every event or gathering, as it’s hard for elderly people to travel for long hours.

One soldier defied all odds and even traveled for over five hours just to let his grandfather give him the first salute, and he appeared not to regret their touching encounter.

In a video shared on TikTok by Amanda Penning in June 2022, the original poster said their grandfather was not able to attend her cousin’s Army commissioning ceremony.

But since the soldier really wanted his grandfather to be a part of his special day, he decided to drive for five hours just to see the sweet old man on the very same day.

In the beginning of the clip, the new soldier could be seen standing outside a house, and then his grandfather stepped out shortly.

“Hello, how are you?” The soldier greeted the elderly man.

The grandfather later asked him an emotional question: “Lieutenant, I wanna ask you a question. May I be the lucky one to give you the first salute?” To which the soldier happily agreed.

The old man gave him his salute, to which the soldier saluted back, they shook hands, and then the video ended with them giving each other a big hug.

“Beautiful,” the woman holding the phone could be heard in the background before the video cuts.

The comment section of the video was then filled with love and support from different people around the internet.

One user noted that the sweet interaction between the two reminded her of her grandfather.

“not me sitting here saying how much he reminds me of my pop, on Father’s day, & hearing him say ‘how’s that Amanda?’. thank you, my heart needed that♡,” she wrote.

Another one commented and revealed that they felt emotional after watching the clip, as they wrote: “And, I’m bawling. Grandpa’s salute was perfect!! I love this so much!! thank you both for your service ❤️🤍💙🇺🇸🙏”

“Very precious and beautiful thank you for for letting see this I needed to see and hear this GodBless everyone thank you 🙏❤️❤️💕💕💞💞💞❤️🤍💙,” one commented.

“What a special moment & memory to have. 🥰 Congratulations on your new commission Lt. God bless you and Thank you for your service 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸,” one wrote.

“This hits hard. Such love such respect through the uniform and each other. We need to get back to the old ways of being proud to be an American,” another one wrote.

“The goosebumps are heavy on this one... what a gift! Congratulations to grandson and grandfather!” one commented.

One commenter then gave the new Lieutenant a piece of advice as he wrote, “Grandpa was crisp with his salute. Congratulations LT. Listen to your platoon NCO’s when you get to unit. They will steer you the right way.”

Another user felt how special that moment was back when they did it for the first time, as they wrote, “Well that just hit me in the feels to what it felt like to return my first salute as a new LT 15.5 years ago.”

What do you think of the sweet interaction between the grandfather and the soldier? Did you experience special moments like this? Let us know your thoughts, and make sure to pass this on to your friends and family.