Instead of spending his Spring Break with crowds of other co-eds in sunny South Padre, Belmont University student Alex Howe made the journey from Tennessee back home to the Chicago suburbs to surprise his younger sister, Isabella, for her 16th birthday.
Their father, Kevin Howe, recorded his daughter’s reaction during her birthday dinner at Olive Garden in suburban St. Charles. The video shows Isabella speaking with Alex over the phone with her family all around her. Her dad is recorded saying "this is the longest conversation ever," to which Isabella mouths "I know. I feel really awkward."
Just after she hung up, her big brother rounds the corner.
In an email sent to NBC Chicago last Friday, Kevin Howe wrote "So, Isabella's 16th birthday dinner was tonight. She was really looking forward to it but admitted it wouldn't be [the] same without her big brother this year…”
The trip from Nashville to Chicago was anything but easy. Alex and a friend were en route in Kentucky when they got stuck in a winter storm. The storm dumped up to two feet of snow in parts of the state, leaving hundreds of drivers stranded on Interstate 65. They had to stay in a hotel until the storm cleared.
The Howe family lives in Geneva. Their father said Alex and Isabella have always been close. Alex is a freshman at Belmont University, majoring in business and minoring in music. Isabella goes to Geneva High School.
The last time the family was together was for Christmas. They didn’t think they would see each other again until May.
