Army Specialist Espinosa of Cocoa Beach Surprises Daughter at SeaWorld

Four-year-old Alexis Espinosa is a fan of the all-new Shamu show, One Ocean. She’s seen it before, but never with her father, Army Specialist Eric Espinosa. Why haven’t they been able to share this special time together? He’s spent the last year serving in Afghanistan as an Army combat engineer, responsible for finding, diffusing and/or activating explosive devices.

As a special surprise to his daughter, Specialist Espinosa wanted to return home with a “splash!” His plan went flawlessly as the One Ocean show began in usual fashion today (August 2, 2012), with a salute to our men and women in uniform.

“Look! It’s my dad on the screen!”

The announcer encouraged all military personnel to stand and, just as they do in every show, the cameras panned the crowd. Imagine Alexis’ surprise when the face on the jumbo ShamuVision screens was HER father!

SeaWorld’s Here’s to the Heroes program salutes the men and women of our armed forces and their families. Through 2012, SeaWorld is offering a single day ticket to members of the military and up to 3 direct dependents. Register online here.