By Ian Hugo and Valeria Araujo – Advocate Editors

Jonathan Law gave a school-wide “thank you” to a group of invited veterans on November 11.

During the nearly two-hour ceremony, students learned about the armed forces, its members, and their experiences protecting America’s freedom.

“I think it was great what the veterans have done for us because they have educated us about a lot of different things,”  principal Mr. Thompson said. “The fact that we were able to say ‘thank you,’ we don’t get to do that often.”

Law’s history department worked very hard to put together the event for the veterans.

“The whole idea of this was to honor and respect our veterans and it was so great to see a wonderful turnout of veterans from all branches,” history teacher Mr. Batson said.

The day began with the Jonathan Law band leading the visiting veterans down through the auditorium and onto the stage, followed by a warm welcome to all those in attendance.

Law’s senior class officers then led the school in saying the Pledge of Allegiance and the choir sang a beautiful rendition of the national anthem.

“The whole choir was honored to be asked to sing the national anthem at the Veterans Day ceremony, knowing we were going to be singing it for veterans who have fought for our country, so we worked very hard at making it one of our  best performances that we could do,” choir teacher Mrs. Rizzotti said. “We did a really great job. I think everyone enjoyed it.”

The choir’s performance of the national anthem brought many of the veterans back to the past.

“(One of the veterans) he said that after hearing the national anthem that it brought back a lot of memories from when he was in grammar school here in Milford,” Rizzotti said. “It was pretty amazing to be able to be that group that brings back those good memories for all of those men and women who have fought for our country.”

Junior class senator Jill Bendlak then read a short history of Veterans Day in the United States which was followed by Thompson’s introduction of the Veteran’s Assembly Co-Coordinator Lt. Col. Joseph Viscount.

“I talked about the history of Veterans Day, Armistice Day, and how they’ve changed since it was established in the 1930s,” Bendlak said. “It was really interesting to find out the progression of what’s happened over the years.”

Viscount began with introducing the panel of veterans to the Law community by saying their name, which branch they served in, and giving a short background about them which allowed students to get to know the individuals they were honoring better.

After the greetings, Viscount, Staff Sgt. Shane Simpson, and Staff Sgt. Byron Larrea invited students to come up on stage and participate in Drill Games, similar to what members of the Armed Forces experience in basic training.

“I was  in the U.S. Navy, I was a second class petty officer, and I did radar on the ships,” veteran Miles McKenzie said.

Viscount invited 10 members of the audience to come up on stage, however audience members flocked to the stage which had students stretching from one side to the other following Simpson’s lead.

“It was more difficult than I thought,” senior Ireoluwa Opayemi said. “It was very hard to stand still but it was a very rewarding experience. It gave me a little insight into what veterans and soldiers do daily.”

After students were given a taste of what goes on in basic training, Viscount’s close friend Lt. Richard Platt showed a presentation of Milford’s War Memorials, from 1776 to today.

“I was on (an amphibious transport for the Navy) for two and a half years and made deployments all they way to Japan and pacific combat and I just noticed that they had a thing on the public television for Iwo Jima and we had a practice landing there on the 11th anniversary of the actual landing in 1956 so you could say I’ve been to a lot of places people haven’t been because of my time on the Navy,” Platt said.

Many of the veterans were honored to participate in the event and were touched about the recognition given to them.

“It was very emotional, it’s very nice,” said ET1 (SS) Justin Knight. “Most veterans don’t seek attention and are very humble when it happens, it’s just kind of like ‘We did what we did and it’s part of our life and it’s part of us.’ We consider it an everyday thing and not that important, and then to see other people who respect it and show the respect for it, it is a very humbling experience.”

Senior class officers then read quotes from Law students about what Veterans Day means to Law, followed by individual readings from junior class president Zach Anderson, senior class senator Janelle Grant, and senior class president Leo Merturi.

Anderson and Grant recited readings from “In Flanders Fields” and “We Shall Keep the Faith,” respectively, while Merturi discussed the symbol of the poppy.

“I thought it was great that we gathered as a school and commemorated all the brave and selfless veterans,” Merturi said. “I thought the readings were the best way to commemorate the veterans for all they’ve done for our country and to educate students about the history of Veterans Day.”

The ceremonies were wrapped up with a video “thank you” to veterans from the Law community accompanied by an enthusiastic applause and a salute from students and teachers alike.

“My favorite part about the day was what we did to thank the veterans – the video of what Veterans Day means to us as a Jonathan Law family,” Thompson said.

History teacher Mrs. Rowley, who coordinated the ceremony, said she was very proud of everyone involved.

“I felt very proud today to be able to be a part of the planning of a Veterans’ appreciation event,” Rowley said. “I think that it was very well received by the students and I think the veterans have expressed enjoyment in being here.”