HOA to Family: Take Down Sailor's Welcome Sign

Anthony Marsiglia is in the Navy, currently deployed on an aircraft carrier, but coming home in the next few weeks. His family had a "welcome" sign hanging outside their Louisiana home for him—until their Lafayette homeowner's association instructed them, via attorney, to take it down. The Frenchman's Creek subdivision HOA didn't give KATC much in the way of answers—a letter the family received points to homeowner rules requiring signs to be no larger than 24 inches by 36 inches, but the sign fits those dimensions—but the attorney told the station the sign can only be up two weeks before Marsiglia returns home and two weeks after.

"He's out there and he's left his daughter, that's hard already for him," says Marsiglia's mom, who lives in the house. "This is how she keeps him in her heart every day and clearly, if you see the house, it's a homage to her daddy." Adds daughter Alex, 8, who was just 4 when her father left for the Navy, "I miss him and I'm proud of him. I wish he wasn't in the Navy." Marsiglia's mom says the HOA hasn't explained, to her satisfaction, why the sign can't stay up year-round. Now, KATC reports, the HOA has hired a mediator to deal with the situation—and other veterans are showing their support. One former Marine placed a flag and a yellow ribbon on the subdivision sign, both of which were quickly removed. (More Louisiana stories.)