BANGOR – Many a family showed strength in numbers when the Maine Army National Guard Security Force II unit returned Sunday morning from a yearlong tour of duty in Iraq, but perhaps the strongest people in the room were the relatives of Sgt. Richard Parker, the only member of the group who did not return.

Parker, of Phillips, died June 14, a day after being injured by a roadside blast in Scania, Iraq. He was 26.

Six of Parker’s immediate family members stood with Ashley Smith, Parker’s 23-year-old fiancee, and welcomed the 90 troops, many of whom had been friends with Parker. The unit arrived at 10 a.m. in Hangar B of the Aviation Support Facility on Hayes Street in Bangor.

In a stroller beside Smith was a child Parker had never met, his 61/2-month-old son, Keegan.

“I’m just here to show my support for his unit and let them meet Keegan because I know some of them wanted to,” Smith said, her eyes welling with tears as she looked down at her son.

Parker’s stepfather held high a sign that stated, “The Family of Sgt. R.K. Parker Welcomes You Home!” After greeting their own families, many of the arriving troops stopped to embrace Parker’s relatives, including his mother, sister and stepmother, who live in Strong. Maj. Gen. John W. Libby and Cmdr. Kent Cousins were among those who paid their respects to the family.

“It was very sad to lose him. They [the troops] really took it hard,” Cousins said.

Security Force II consists of soldiers from around the state, who, while stationed for 12 months in Navistar, Iraq, conducted security operations and route clearance.

“These guys logged over a million miles in convoy operations throughout Iraq,” said Maine National Guard spokesman Capt. Shanon Cotta.

On Sunday, the atmosphere was that of a 400-person family reunion in the open-air, warehouselike hangar. Sunlight filled the space and rock ‘n’ roll blared from speakers as families, veterans and community members ate pastries and waited for the unit to arrive. A slide show of photographs of the soldiers was projected on a movie theater-size screen at the front of the room.

When the announcement was made that the troops had arrived, the crowd screamed and turned toward the enormous bay doors of the hangar. They rose slowly, revealing two white buses. The troops poured out, and no one had to search long for family members.

Tears flowed, children squealed and American flags fluttered. Those without a specific person to greet stood in the back and grinned, taking in the scene.

The only other member of Security Force II who did not appear in Bangor on Sunday was Spec. David Saucier, who was wounded seriously in May and is expected to spend at least a year recovering at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

Sgt. Stephen Channell, 51, of Bangor was reunited with his wife, Sgt. Maureen Hickling, 50, and parents, Janet and Denzil Channell of Troy. When asked what they were going to do with Channell on his first day home since March, the family said they had not made any plans.

“We’re just glad he’s home,” said Denzil Channell.