FLORIDA– After riding out Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas, a Florida preschooler got an outpouring of love from his classmates when he returned to school Monday.

Makai Simmons, a 3-year-old in Pembroke Pines walked into his classroom and was instantly met with hugs. In the video recorded by his mother, Tekara Capron, Makai starts wiping away tears as someone says “we missed you.”

“They came and they hugged him and supported him,” Capron told CNN. “It really touched me, you know, this is what I needed.”

Capron told CNN she grew up in the Bahamas and tries to get back there every time she has a holiday weekend. So when Labor Day weekend came it was no question she’d make the trip to Freeport, Grand Bahama with her son, all while hoping to avoid Hurricane Dorian as it moved toward the Florida coast.

“Instead, it came directly to my island where my entire family, my friends, my loved ones were,” Capron said.