A stunned fourth grader was brought to tears when her Air Force sergeant stepdad suddenly emerged from her school's mascot's costume to surprise her after a year overseas. Sgt. Matt Phelps had been serving in South Korea since early 2019, but on February 12, having returned to the U.S., he decided he would surprise his stepdaughter, Kaitlyn Foley, to make-up for the time together they had lost. At Sunrise Elementary School, in Widefield, Colorado, Matt, 36, dressed as the school's mascot, an otter, before entering Kaitlyn's classroom. The otter was holding a giant Hershey's Kisses - an item which held significance, as before he left, Matt had given Kaitlyn, 10, regular-sized Kisses; one for each day he would be away. The otter then approached Kaitlyn and, in an emotional moment that was caught on video, Matt then removed the mascot's head to reveal his true identity. Kaitlyn immediately burst into tears and dived into her stepfather's arms. Matt's wife, Kelly Phelps, 37, is a teacher at the school, and so helped organize the surprise for her daughter.