Veterans lauded as American heroes

Author: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Wednesday, November 11, 2009

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Students at Tates Creek Middle volunteered to help with the half-staff flag ceremony. Many said they have relatives who have served in the military.

Students at Tates Creek Middle volunteered to help with the half-staff flag ceremony. Many said they have relatives who have served in the military.

Students at Tates Creek Middle volunteered to help with the half-staff flag ceremony. Many said they have relatives who have served in the military.Sgt. Grant Stanford, a U.S. Army veteran who teaches social studies at TCMS, guided the youngsters gathered around the flag pole. "I just want them to grasp the concept of everything soldiers sacrifice," he said.Capt. J. Thompson, a Marine Reservist, greets WWII Air Force veteran George White at Liberty Elementary.The JROTC color guard from Henry Clay High School opened Liberty's assembly.Bill Snyder, a U.S. Army veteran who served in Korea, had a front-row seat at Liberty, where his daughter teaches.Liberty's program concluded with "Stars and Stripes Forever."Students at Martin Luther King Jr. Academy formed a bucket brigade to load care packages for service members overseas.Several schools across the district helped with the project, collecting nonperishable foods, books and toiletries for distribution by Military Missions Inc. Members of the National Guard picked up the donations Nov. 6 at MLK Academy.Students at Garden Springs Elementary made thank-you cards for veterans.Several servicemen, representing various branches of the military, spoke at Tates Creek High School. They talked about everything from U.S. military accomplishments of the past century to the proper way to display and fold an American flag. Children at William Wells Brown Elementary gathered in the hallway for the Pledge of Allegiance.Students at William Wells Brown Elementary made American flags in art class as part of their Veterans Day observance.

Across the district, students and school staff paused on Veterans Day to honor and thank the service men and women who have given so much for their country.

With patriotic songs, heartfelt letters and programs focusing on the significance of the special day, Fayette County students rallied and celebrated their American freedoms.

At Liberty Elementary

Donald Brush of Morehead, a veteran of the Vietnam era who served in the U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps, was among the dozen or so veterans in the audience for the Wednesday morning assembly. He has three grandchildren attending Liberty Elementary.

“They just called and asked me to come,” Brush said, adding, “I bet they wish their dad was here instead.”

The children’s father is in the U.S. Navy, stationed aboard a submarine out of Norfolk, Va.

Capt. J. Thompson, a Marine Reservist and husband of a Liberty teacher, was the guest speaker at Liberty’s program. He encouraged the youngsters to pull together in class as a team – much like members of the armed forces do as they take care of one another.

“We’ve got the air, the sea and the land covered,” he said, praising the Air Force, Navy, Army, Marine Corps and Coast Guard. “They all play a very valuable role.”

Thompson later asked all the veterans there to stand and be recognized, noting, “They’re the real heroes.”

At Tates Creek Middle School

About a dozen students volunteered to participate in a half-staff ceremony around the flag pole outside Tates Creek Middle School.

“My dad was in the Army. When he came out of Iraq, I was happy,” said seventh-grader Maurice Proctor. “Touching that flag helps me get started on what I want to be when I grow up, which is to be in the Army.”

Sixth-graders Scott Gibbons and Julia Taylor also have relatives who have served.

“My grandfather (Vietnam) and great-grandfather (World War II) were both in the military and have taught me so much about what they had to do,” said Scott, who wants to join the JROTC in high school.

Julia noted her father and his father served in the Army, and her maternal granddad was in the Air Force.

“I just want to do this to celebrate everyone who has helped for our freedom,” she said before the flag ceremony.

At Martin Luther King Jr. Academy

Members of the National Guard picked up care packages Nov. 6 at Martin Luther King Jr. Academy. “It gives us the opportunity to support our troops,” said Principal Mark Sellers.

Students across the district collected about 60 boxes of items such as clothing, nonperishable food, books and toiletries to send to Kentucky service members overseas through Military Missions Inc.

The other participants were Henry Clay and Paul Laurence Dunbar high schools and Beaumont, Crawford, Edythe J. Hayes, Jessie Clark, LTMS and Winburn middle schools.