WARSAW — Three Americans are heading home after they spent five years as hostages in Colombia.

Their plane went down in the jungle in 2003 during a drug surveillance operation. They worked for the Pentagon. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia captured them and several others that year. They were finally rescued on Wednesday.

It was the news a local family had been waiting to hear. Angie Tom and her dad Art Gakstatter live in Warsaw, but know rescued hostage Keith Stansell. Knowing he's now with his family has given new meaning to their Fourth of July celebrations.

They are the pictures Angie and Art had longed to see — three American hostages free at last.

"I burst into tears because how exciting is that!” Angie said.

"I was thrilled. It's great, it's hard to believe,” Art added.

Rescued hostage Keith Stansell was once married to Angie's cousin, and they have two children.

He was working as a military contractor in 2003 when his drug surveillance plane crashed in Colombia's rebel-held jungle.

"He knew it was dangerous — Keith is a little bit of a daredevil in personality, but very, very disciplined — so he knew the risks,” Angie explained. “But it paid well and he wanted to support his family and obviously take care of them for a long time."

For more than five years they prayed for his return, not even knowing if he was dead or alive.

"You always hope and you pray and you're wishful, but you just wonder. We weren't sure if we'd ever really get to see him again,” Angie said.

"I certainly hoped so but as five years went by, quite frankly … I tried to be optimistic, I'm an optimist, but I thought less and less of the possibility,” Art said.

So seeing the images of the rescued hostages — and on this Fourth of July, hearing he's already reunited with his children — gives new meaning to their celebration of freedom.

"It really puts a whole new perspective to Independence Day — first time being free in five years,” Angie said. “We're really, really excited for everybody but especially for the kids."

And those kids have grown up a lot while Dad's been gone — his son is now a teenager. They live in Florida and Angie told us when Stansell heard that his son liked to fish, he promised him the fishing trip of a lifetime.