BANGOR – Ten years ago, they called her “the hugger.”

At Wednesday’s anniversary of the return of the first Gulf War troops to Bangor, Elthier Sonia was up to her old tricks.

Clad in her Stars and Stripes bandanna, Sonia was among several hundred people to turn out at Bangor International Airport to celebrate the day the first soldiers touched down in the city upon returning home from the Persian Gulf.

“I hugged everyone who came off the plane,” said Sonia, 66, who estimated that she greeted 300 flights over the course of several weeks. “I’d like to hug them all again.”

The Hampden woman had her chance Wednesday afternoon, giving Sgt. 1st Class Kevin Tillman a squeeze before he again took up the saxophone and played his now-famous rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

Tillman, now 36, was an Army medic when he stepped off the first returning transport plane in the early morning hours of March 8, 1991, after serving as part of Operation Desert Storm.

Overwhelmed by the reception, he borrowed a saxophone from a member of the John Bapst Memorial High School band, and the rest is local history.

While locals flocked to greet the troops that returned in coming weeks, the Bangor greeters’ enthusiasm and Tillman’s impromptu performance also gained national attention as CNN and the major network news stations aired the video footage.

At this week’s reunion, Tillman, an assistant professor of military medicine at the Uniform University of Health Sciences medical school in Bethesda, Md., praised the flag-waving greeters who lined up 10 years ago to welcome the troops.

“I fear that if it would have not happened in Maine, it would not have happened,” Tillman said of the thousands of people who turned out to greet the troops until the last plane took off nearly two months later. “Without a command and without a directive, Maine set the standard.”

One of the veterans who helped set that standard undoubtedly was Everett Steele of Blue Hill, a driving force behind this week’s airport reunion.

From his wheelchair, the 68-year-old Korean War veteran delivered a brief but emotional speech Wednesday, bringing several in attendance to tears.

“Around the world they came to be greeted here in Bangor, Maine,” said a choked-up Steele, who in an earlier interview said he organized the event to honor those who serve – and served – in the military ranks. “God bless America. God bless Bangor, Maine, and I love every one of you.”

Among those recognized at the reunion was Army Sgt. Maj. John Leonard, 54, of Glenburn, who said the reception he received upon returning home 10 years ago has stayed strong in his memory throughout the years.

“People ask me what it was like … if I received any instant gratification from it,” said Leonard, who served a four-month stint in the Middle East with his Maine Army National Guard unit. “The answer was no, because that feeling is still there.”

The John Bapst band and chorus also played a major part in both the 1991 and 2001 events.

On Wednesday, the young musicians and singers, like their older schoolmates, paid tribute to those in uniform by playing patriotic tunes.

Ten years ago, Mindy Gould was a junior at John Bapst, a saxophonist and president of the school band.

Gould, now 26 and living in Camden, brought her clapping 2-year-old daughter, Antyna, to the musical celebration. As she watched the band, Gould said she would remember her involvement in the 1991 event for several reasons, including the pride she felt for taking part.

But, besides pride, Gould – like many others Wednesday – said she would never forget the emotions that filled the airport lobby when the first planes landed and the troops saw the crowds of well-wishers.

“It was the first time I ever saw a grown man cry,” said Gould, who donned her band jacket for the event. “I guess for that reason alone, it will always stick in my mind.”