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'My mom!' | Taylor boy receives 'special award' in military homecoming reunion

'I was very excited and I was just ready to see him. It has been a while,' the military mom said.

TAYLOR, Texas -- When Pre-K student John Michael Savarese was called up on stage during an awards ceremony Thursday, he was told he was getting a "special award."

It turned out that award was more special than he imagined.

His mom, who serves in the Air Force and has been in Korea since before Christmas, surprised the 4-year-old on stage.

WATCH THE EMOTIONAL MOMENT HERE:

Beforehand, his mom, Mariana Chapman, was waiting in the principal's office at TH Johnson Elementary School in Taylor, Texas.

“It was a lot of nerves," Chapman said. "I was very excited and I was just ready to see him. It has been a while.”

Not only was he able to see his mom after months apart, it was also an early birthday present. Savarese turns 5 next week. He was excited, to say the least.

“I just saw my mom and I hug her very fast on the stage to run," he said.

It was an emotional experience for the military mom.

“I was kind of worried of what his reaction would be like -- whether or not he would have a good reaction to seeing me," she said. "But I also was thinking, 'Don’t cry, keep it in.' I did a fairly good job with it.”

Over the next few weeks, the two plan to spend lots of time together and catch up.

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