After the celebration, a teacher wrote, "I am so very thankful to teach in a school where Veterans are truly honored. I have an aunt who teaches in another state. They haven't said the Pledge or done anything patriotic in about a decade."
Assistant Principal Kristi Stacks said, at the end of the day, "This was a great experience for our students whether they had a veteran come to visit today or not. One of the men who was leaving today stopped me to say he was very impressed by the respect that our students had shown today. As he was talking to me, a little girl passed by and said, 'Thank you,' to the veteran. It was really a special moment."
A parent emailed to say, "I wanted to let you know how much I appreciate the children at Paine for honoring our men and women in the armed forces. It was a humbling experience that I won't forget. You are to be commended for helping to teach these important values."
A member of our staff relayed the following incident: "A gentleman passed by wearing a sticker identifying him as a veteran. I hugged him and told him, 'Thank you,' for his service to our country and for coming to our program today. He had tears on his face as he said, 'I've been out of Vietnam for 40 years, and this is the first time anyone has said thank you (in a personal way) to me.' He said, 'This program and these kids are so awesome. This made my service all worth it.' "
I enjoyed seeing the many veterans who attended our Veteran's Day Lunch on Friday, but, most of all, I loved seeing our students show these veterans how much we appreciate them! As I was walking down the hall, I saw students stop and shake the hands of veterans and tell them thank you. As I was eating lunch in the cafeteria, tears came to my eyes when our students stood and applauded respectfully for these heros. I am proud to be a part of Paine Intermediate and can't wait until next Veteran's Day!
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