Air Force mom surprises son at RiverDogs baseball game after he throws out first pitch

— -- Air Force Staff Sgt. Georgina Walton, home from deployment, surprised her son Brody after he threw out the first pitch at the Charleston, South Carolina, RiverDogs baseball game Thursday.

Brody, who turns 6 Sunday, thought he was only throwing the first pitch at the minor league game for his birthday. But what he got was an even better present: a hug from his mom.

“He just stared at me and his eyes got big and teary,” Walton, 26, told ABC News of the heartwarming moment. “He couldn’t say anything. He was very stunned. He didn’t say anything until he was almost in the locker rooms and I asked him, ‘Are you ok?’ and he said, ‘I’m just so excited.’”

Walton was deployed to an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia for almost seven months. She said Brody was terribly upset that his mom wouldn’t be home for his upcoming birthday, so she knew the homecoming would have to be a special one.

“I looked online at the events happening around here to surprise him,” she said. “The RiverDogs game was one of the events. I grew up going to the RiverDogs and always loved it. He’s been raised to love sports so I contacted them and it was his first game there ever.”

Walton could barely contain her excitement before walking onto the field to join him.

“I was extremely overwhelmed,” she recalled. “I had to stand back for a minute to let him throw the first pitch. As soon I saw him walk on the field I wanted to run out. I was overcome with emotion. I missed him so much.”

She said she is thankful for everyone who helped make this magical moment possible.

“I’m extremely thankful for my family. I couldn’t do it without them,” Walton said. “I’m also so grateful for the RiverDogs for letting me do that. They were amazing. And I’m so grateful to serve our country too, and be a part of the Air Force. I’m so grateful for everything they’ve given me.”

Now the mother-son duo are looking forward to celebrating Brody’s birthday this weekend by going four-wheeling at Carolina Adventure World, an outdoor ATV and dirt bike park.