A senior at Columbia University got the best graduation present Monday: Her father, an Army reservist serving in Afghanistan, surprised her with a hug and kiss at her graduation ceremony.
"Congratulations, young lady," U.S. Army Reserve Captain Keith Robinson told his daughter Ruby after she received her diploma from the Columbia Engineering School. "I am so proud of you. I love you so much."
About two weeks ago, her father broke the news that he couldn't make Ruby's graduation because he has been deployed to northern Afghanistan for the last six months. But his general was able to arrange a last-minute leave, so Robinson flew more than 14 hours from Kuwait to Washington D.C., then from D.C. to Denver, and then to New York just in time for the ceremony.
"I really didn't expect for him to be there," Ruby Robinson told an interviewer from Columbia University. "I was kind of upset about that, but I knew he had other duties to do in Afghanistan. So when he came I was so excited."
