Kyleigh Livingston couldn’t wait any longer.
Once she saw her dad, Cody Livingston, in the airport, she took off running. Still in his uniform, United States Army Spc. Cody Livingston picked up Kyleigh and embraced her in a tight bear hug — their first in over a year.
After spending the last year serving overseas as a U.S. Army helicopter mechanic in Iraq, the Plant City resident set foot back on American soil Saturday, April 15, just in time to spend Easter Sunday with his family and friends.
And despite the sacrifice of being away from his daughter and his wife, Brittany, for such extended periods of time, serving had always been in Cody Livingston’s heart.
For as long as he could remember, Cody Livingston had wanted to serve in the military.
He was a fifth grader during the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. But it was that moment, he said, that would solidify his future decision to serve his country. This year will mark his ninth year in the service.
“I’ve just always wanted to do it, ever since I was little,” he said. “I joined the summer between my junior and senior year of high school.”
He’d met Brittany while they were students at Marshall Middle School, but he’d already enrolled in the military by the time they got married in December 2010. His first year-long tour came shortly after the start of their marriage, from August 2011 to August 2012.
This time, Cody Livingston was able to come home earlier than expected. Originally told that he would be returning to Plant City in June, he was put on one of the first flights back home and surprised his siblings and extended family.
“I plan to make a career out of it,” Cody Livingston said. “I will re-enlist. I’m hoping to make sergeant by the end of the year. I love it.”
Like her husband knew he was meant to serve, Brittany Livingston always anticipated that she would one day be the wife of a soldier or a law enforcement officer.
“I kind of always figured I might be a military wife,” she said. “I’m very independent, and I knew I could do this. I can support him when he’s gone.”
While Cody Livingston was serving overseas, the couple would try to FaceTime with Kyleigh at least once per week.
“His available hours are during school and work,” Brittany Livingston said. “The time change is hard, but Kyleigh and I try to stay busy.”
Besides her family and friends, Brittany Livingston found an extended support system with fellow military spouses. She serves as the co-chair for the Jacksonville-based Family Readiness Group (FRG).
“You meet so many other wives and sisters and mothers who help you get through it,” she said. “He and his soldiers are like brothers, and we’re like a family. It’s your extended family, for sure. We help families with fundraising if they need it, and we send the soldiers care packages. It gives you peace of mind. I couldn’t trade the friends or family or knowledge for anything.”
The couple’s advice to military couples dealing with deployment is to remain honest with one another.
“Sometimes you see couples holding things back,” Brittany Livingston said. “You have to acknowledge things.
While serving in Iraq, Cody Livingston worked 12-hour shifts six days per week.
“We’d get up, eat, go out to the air field and work a 12-hour shift,” he said.
With his most recent tour completed, he will return to work for I-4 Power Equipment before reporting back to his unit in Jacksonville in August.
Since returning home early, Cody Livingston has surprised his grandparents, twin brother and parents. He and Brittany Livingston kept his early return a secret so that they could surprise their loved ones.
The day he returned home, Brittany Livingston made a video compilation of the surprised reactions and posted it to Facebook.
“We just want to say thank you to all the family and friends who helped us through this last year,” she said. “We couldn’t have done it without them.”
Contact Emily Topper at etopper@plantcityobserver.com.