DUBLIN, Ga. — The last time military veteran Tori Branum saw her daughter Taryn Bishop was 17 months ago.
Bishop was headed to Poland for her first overseas tour as a Navy Seaman Master at Arms (MA) in summer 2019.
"She was supposed to come home in June. COVID happened in March, they started putting all these restrictions in place, and then they made it where Americans can't travel to Europe, so me going over there was not even an option," Branum said.
As we began quarantining in the States, Bishop was going through a similar experience in Poland.
"My base did a really good job at wearing a mask, sitting separately in the van. 3-4 people per van. Social distancing, no group gatherings...we could only go into town for essential things," Bishop said.
With COVID-19 rising this summer, the chances of coming home at her year mark in June begin to shrink.
"It was just changing on who's approving your leave, who's going to get to decide if you get to go home, but it's like that across the military," said Bishop. "So many people are stuck, and they're not getting their leave approved or they're just not allowed to leave where they are to go see their family."
"She had to go through a lot of stuff to get to come home on leave, but when we found out, we were super excited," Branum said.
"I was really happy to see her and be able to hug her and just be like, 'Look I'm here now,'" Bishop said.
She hopes her story will remind people to follow safety guidelines and do their part to help control this pandemic.
"There are reasons why certain things are put out and recommended that you do, and it's not hard to do them. I've done them for a long time and if I can do it, anyone can do it," Bishop said.
She will have to quarantine when she gets back to Poland. She's leaving Central Georgia for a quick visit with family in Virginia before she heads back overseas on December 15.
RELATED HEADLINES