Watch a soldier surprise kids who sent care packages to the troops

Army Staff Sgt. Timothy Stanley fought in Afghanistan and graduated from air assault school. But when he visited an elementary school near his base, he found that even an auditorium full of youngsters could make him nervous.

For two years, the children of North Bay Elementary School in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, sent care packages to the men and women of the U.S. Army's Charlie Troop, 3/89 CAV, from Fort Polk, Louisiana, during C-troop's time in Afghanistan.

"To get a letter, a picture, or a box of junk food, it's amazing," Stanley told ABC affiliate WLOX. "To be able to get up in front of these kids and say thank you means a lot to me."

WLOX's Trang Pham-Bui captured this video of young students gathered in a patriotic assembly. The kids were giving their thoughts and remembering what it felt like to decide what to send American soldiers overseas.

Stanley drove for six hours just to surprise the students. He read them a heartfelt thank you from Charlie troop and presented the school and children with several American flags flown over Afghanistan.