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CVMS celebrates veterans
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Pat Lally, Fiona Lally and Anne Lally attended the Canfield Village Middle School’s annual Veterans Day Program during which eighth-grader Fiona honored her uncle, Pat, a U.S. Army veteran.
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.To close the Canfield Village Middle School’s Veterans Day Program, an eighth-grade student played "Taps" from the back of the auditorium, while students and teachers looked on and a United States Marine Corps veteran saluted.
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.The CVMS Cardinal Chorale, under the direction of choir teacher Stephanie Summers, performed "Oh America" at Canfield Village Middle School’s Veterans Day Program on Nov. 11.
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Under the direction of social studies teachers Mike Kerensky and Jason Jugenheimer (back right), eighth-grade student volunteers prepared and executed the Canfield Village Middle School’s Veterans Day Program, which featured William Peters (back left), on Nov. 11.
By ABBY SLANKER
Canfield Village Middle School eighth-grade students honored veterans during the school’s annual Veterans Day Program on Nov. 11. The volunteer students invited local veterans to attend and were responsible for every aspect of the program, from writing speeches to gathering pictures to creating the PowerPoint presentation.
The students, under the direction of social studies teachers Mike Kerensky and Jason Jugenheimer, worked several hours after school to organize the program, which carried the theme ‘American Superheroes.’
The students began the program with the posting of the colors, followed by the “Pledge of Allegiance” and the “National Anthem.” Next, “Armed Forces on Parade” was played with veterans in attendance asked to stand and be recognized when the song from their branch of the military was presented. Each veteran received moving applause.
Keeping with the program’s theme, six students compared the traits of American superheroes to veterans in their families. Joe Marzano compared his great-grandfather, Joe Marzano of the U.S. Army, to Superman, who is a role model to all Americans. Mallory Vaclav compared her grandfather, Robert Vaclav of the U.S. Navy, to Aquaman, whose motto is always be honest.
Michael Delucia compared his grandfather, Joseph Gill of the U.S. Air Force, to The Flash, whose motto is, ‘It’s not about being a hero - it’s about doing the right thing.’ Fiona Lally compared her uncle, Pat Lally of the U.S. Army, to Batman, saying, “He puts the needs of others above his own.”
Sydney Karlock compared her grandfather, Larry Karlock of the U.S. Army, to Spiderman, whose motto is, ‘With great power comes great responsibility.’ Dante Calabria compared his grandfather, Ernst Wolter of the U.S. Army, saying, “He made choices to help others while putting himself in harms way.”
After each student’s speech, their veteran family member was asked to stand and be recognized.
The CVMS Cardinal Chorale, under the direction of choir teacher Stephanie Summers, performed “Oh America” for the standing room only crowd. A member of the chorus then performed a solo of “America the Beautiful.”
William Peters, the program’s guest speaker, is a U.S. Army Sergeant E5, served in Iraq from March 2004-April 2005, served as Squad Leader in Iraq.
“I decided to enter the military because I was looking for a way to pay for college and I thought, why not let them pay for it? It was during peace, so I figured it would be easy. Then Sept. 11 happened, and the world changed,” Peters said.
And, according to Peters, his world changed, too.
“I had a mission then. The mission that all soldiers have. Being a member of the U.S. Army is the single greatest accomplishment of my life. I was a member of a team and the definition of a team is a group of people accomplishing a task together,” Peters said.
Peters then offered advice on how to thank a veteran.
“The best way to thank a veteran is to exercise the rights afforded to you by their sacrifice. Thanking them for their service is great and a nice gesture, but they will say they didn’t do much. But they will appreciate the acknowledgement of the sacrifices they made,” Peters said.
The poem, “Swept Away,” was then read by an eighth-grade student. To close the program, an eighth-grader played “Taps” from the back of the auditorium.