Flags welcome special agent home from Afghanistan

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- More than 100 US flags line one Fort Bend County street.

They were put there overnight by the mother of a man who just returned from a year-long tour of duty for the State Department in Afghanistan.

Special Agent Mark Richardson says, "I certainly wasn't expecting this. I was really embarrassed, but she's a great mom and it was really sweet of her to do that."

His mother Kathryn calls him a hero. She says, "This boy is the best. He's the best son in the world."

She's been battling breast cancer and other ailments over the past few years and says despite being thousands of miles away, her son has always been supportive of her recovery. She wanted to show him what his devotion means to her.

So she knocked on her neighbors' doors in advance, asking for their permission to place a flag at the edge of each of their properties, so the red, white and blue would line the street as they drove Mark to her home early Friday morning.

Unlike other military, which is often shown gratitude upon their return, Kathryn says Special Agents, because of the covert nature of their work, often are not given public displays of thanks.

Richards wanted to make sure that at least this once, her son's sacrifice was publicly honored.

"It's just a way to say thank you. Thank you to all special agents that do what they do," she said.

Mark's family will all be doing a lot of catching up before his next assignment in a month.