Michigan National Guard father and son reunited in Kosovo

Photo By Sgt. Grace Wajler | U.S. Army Maj. Ryan Reynolds, a public affairs officer assigned to the 126th Theater Public Affairs Support Element, 63rd Troop Command, Michigan National Guard, and his son, Spc. Joey Reynolds, a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter maintainer assigned to Delta Company, 2nd General Support Aviation Battalion, 238th Aviation Regiment (2-238 GSAB), Michigan National Guard, reunite at Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo, June 3, 2025. Ryan is in the Balkans for a two-week overseas deployment for training (ODT) supporting exercise Immediate Response 2025, part of NATO’s largest annual exercise series titled Defender Europe. Joey is currently serving on a nine-month deployment in Kosovo. Though deployed under very different circumstances, their commitment to service and a little coordination led to a memorable reunion on foreign soil. Demonstrating global deterrence and the U.S. Army’s ability to rapidly deploy U.S.-based combat power in Europe and the Arctic region alongside Allies and partners, DEFENDER 25 brings U.S. troops together with forces from 29 Allied and partner nations to build readiness through large-scale combat training from May 11-June 24, 2025. DEFENDER 25 increases the lethality of the NATO alliance through large-scale tactical training maneuvers and long-range fires, builds unit readiness in a complex joint, multinational environment, and leverages host nation capabilities to increase the U.S. Army’s operational reach. During three large-scale combat training exercises—Swift Response, Immediate Response, and Saber Guardian—Ally and partner forces integrate and expand multi-domain operations capability, demonstrating combined command and control structures and readiness to respond to crisis and conflict. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Grace Wajler)  

CAMP BONDSTEEL, KOSOVO

06.10.2025

Story by Maj. Joe Legros 

U.S. Army Europe and Africa     

CAMP BONDSTEEL, Kosovo – The military has a way of bringing people together in unexpected ways, and for U.S. Army Maj. Ryan Reynolds and his son, Spc. Joey Reynolds, that sentiment is especially true. Though deployed under very different circumstances, their commitment to service and a little coordination led to a memorable reunion on foreign soil.

Maj. Reynolds, a public affairs officer assigned to the 126th Theater Public Affairs Support Element (TPASE), 63rd Troop Command, Michigan National Guard, arrived in the Balkans for a two-week overseas deployment for training (ODT) in support of exercise Immediate Response 2025, part of NATO’s largest annual exercise series titled Defender Europe.

“I knew my son, Joey, was deploying with his unit to Kosovo, but I didn’t realize we might have the chance to meet,” said Reynolds. “That’s not something people normally get to do. But, I deployed with that same unit to Kuwait several years ago and reached out to a few colleagues about the possibility.”

Ryan and the 126th TPASE are responsible for providing photos and videos, documenting the enhanced multinational lethality and readiness at Immediate Response. His North Macedonia-based public affairs team wrapped up coverage of the culminating combined arms live-fire exercise earlier in the day, meaning Ryan had just enough time to visit his son later that afternoon.

Meanwhile, Spc. Reynolds, a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter maintainer assigned to Delta Company, 2nd General Support Aviation Battalion, 238th Aviation Regiment (2-238 GSAB), Michigan National Guard, is currently serving on a nine-month deployment in Kosovo. Seeing his father in-person while on deployment was a moment few service members ever experience.

“Not a lot of people get the opportunity that I got,” said the younger Reynolds. “It’s pretty cool to see my dad all the way across the world.”

Growing up in a military household, he vividly recalls watching his father deploy to Kuwait in 2014. He was in fourth grade at the time, but remembers being proud of his father’s service and aware of the sacrifice. The family was separated for over nine months.

Little did the younger Reynolds realize he would deploy with the same exact unit 11 years later.

“I think it’s the coolest thing. Not every parent gets to serve with their kids,” shared Ryan. “I’m super proud of him for making the decision. The Guard is a close-knit family, especially when you deploy together. It’s great to be able to call up people I trust, knowing they have my son's best interest in mind."

Ryan emphasized that he never pressured any of his children to enlist, but it is obvious the military lifestyle rubbed off on his son in a positive way. Joey credits his father and his father’s military friends for inspiring his own career path.

“The reason I joined Army aviation was because of my dad and his friends in the GSAB he served with,” Joey said.

That connection runs deep and those same colleagues now look after Joey as one of their own.

"When Ryan called me up, I was all about making this reunion happen," said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Brian Snook, the aviation task force commander of Task Force Griffin in support of Kosovo operations and commander of the 2-238 GSAB. "Our unit is still in the transition stage of taking over this mission from the previous unit here in Kosovo, so it was good timing all the way around. Plus, how often do a father and son get to meet on deployment?!"

The 2-238 GSAB is in Kosovo to facilitate the movement of personnel, equipment and supplies across the entire area of operations. As a member of the Kosovo Force (KFOR), they serve under a NATO-led international peacekeeping mission established in 1999 to maintain a safe and secure Kosovo, ensure freedom of movement and support broader international efforts for stability in the region.

"I still keep in contact with a number of my deployment buddies," said Ryan. "It's a special feeling to now count my son among this number."

The reunion in Kosovo may have been brief, but it underscored the powerful ties of service and family—a reminder that while deployments separate loved ones, they can also bring them together in unexpected and meaningful ways.

• Date Taken: 06.10.2025
• Date Posted: 06.10.2025 09:47
• Story ID: 500182
• Location: CAMP BONDSTEEL, ZZ
• Hometown: JACKSON, MICHIGAN, US
• Hometown: LANSING, MICHIGAN, US