Tech. Sgt. Gary Romkey stepped out of military customs at BWI Airport on Saturday to find a crowd of cheering strangers waiting to shake his hand and pat him on the back.

The 34-year-old Massachusetts native, on his way home after four months of duty as an Air Force weather forecaster in Qatar, looked a little overwhelmed.

"What was I expecting? Nothing like this, that's for sure," said Sgt. Romkey, as he knelt to accept a purple bead necklace from a little girl with the Stars and Stripes daubed on both cheeks. "This is amazing to me. Just amazing."

Most of the roughly 60 supporters were members of Arundel Christian...