Elmira Heights family shows support for service members

HORSEHEADS — When Elmira Heights native Steven Storm was sent to the front lines in Iraq, his mother-in-law put a sign on her front lawn to show her concern for his safe return.

After a second tour in Afghanistan, Storm, a sergeant with the U.S. Army, is back home, but the sign is still on display in front of Laura Earley’s house on South Main Street in Horseheads.

Earley decided that the sign is a good reminder for people that thousands of other members of the armed forces continue to serve in combat zones, and some will never come home.

“I have a son in the Air Force. That’s how the sign started. They were both in Iraq in 2009,” Earley said. “Steven deployed again and six of his friends were killed in July in Afghanistan. We decided to put the sign back up. He had a hard time with it. I think a lot of people like the sign. We’ve had a lot of comments on it.”

Storm returned stateside a few weeks ago but didn’t stop in his hometown. Instead, he joined his wife, Kathryn, who is Earley’s daughter, in El Paso, Texas, where he is stationed at Fort Bliss.

Showing visible support really makes a difference for men and women who are serving thousands of miles from home, he said.

“It feels good to have people care that you are over there,” he said. “It’s always good to get home. You count down how long you have left.”

Earley plans to leave the sign up for now, and also intends to loan it to a friend who also has a son serving in the military.

“Last week, someone was taking pictures (of the sign), and she was crying,” Earley said. “She said, ‘My husband is serving in Afghanistan, and I wanted to take a picture.’ It really got me. I grew up with family in the service, but once my two kids were over there, that’s when it hit.”