Our Troops: Master Sgt. Julian Alejos, U.S. Air Force

Name: Master Sgt. Julian Alejos, U.S. Air Force.

Age: 44.

His story: Alejos is on his way home this week from a tour in Afghanistan. He made it to Germany today and will head back to the United States from there. Alejos has served 25 years in the military, including 16 years in the reserves. He left for Afghanistan in May. While this was his first tour in Afghanistan, since 2001 he has served in Kuwait three times and served in Africa last year. Alejos, who is a helicopter maintenance mechanic, joined the Air Force right after high school and served 10 years in active duty. As a reservist he is assigned to Patrick Air Force Base in Cocoa Beach, where he is assigned to the search and rescue team and has frequently been called on to prepare for Space Shuttle launches.

Personally: Alejos has lived in Bradenton since 1997. Even so, he is still a big New York Yankees fan. His wife, Julie, is excited to have him home after celebrating their ninth wedding anniversary with her matron of honor rather than her husband. The pair have two sons, Joey, 7, and Jameson, 4, and a 17-year-old daughter, Jordan. Julie says her husband is a hands-on dad, building forts in the back yard and volunteering with their cub scout troop when he can. He also has a daughter who is 21 years old. When he is not performing his military duties, Alejos works at TriNet.