South Habersham ‘Spotlights’ Veterans

One-third of South Habersham’s students wore red shirts on Tuesday morning; one-third wore white shirts; another third wore blue. The sixth, seventh, and eighth graders sat – separated by shirt color – in the bleachers of the gym, looking down at the gymnasium doors, when uniformed veterans began to file in.

The students rose to their feet as the school band played a piece called “Then Come the Heroes.” Members of the school’s Future Farmers of America, in their blue jackets, escorted the veterans to their seats.

It was the beginning of a ceremony called “Honoring the Heroes,” held for Veterans Day – and the South Hab students already knew these military men were their heroes. The students had met them, earlier that morning, face-to-face in their classrooms. The students asked the veterans questions, such as “Do you think of your time in the military very often?” and “How did this experience impact your life?” They also asked “Why did you put your life in danger for us?”

Student Jessica Armour spoke to the crowd and said that the veterans’ visits to classrooms and talks with students “made this ceremony mean more to us.” As the South Habersham Chorus sang patriotic songs, the heads of the veterans turned toward the chorus as they sang words like “sweet land of liberty.” Some of the veterans had tears in their eyes. Two students from each grade read their “letters to a veteran,” original poems, and their “character of a veteran” pieces.

The lights then went out. They gym was dark, with its windows covered, and the room was silent.

Then a large spotlight shone on two students, standing in the bleachers. One of the students was wearing a military uniform as the other read a description of the armed forces the uniform represented – and asked all veterans from that branch of military service to stand. Marines were first, and as Marine veterans stood, the band played the anthem for that branch of the military. FFA students in their blue jackets walked to each standing veteran and handed him a gift.

Two other students then stood in the bleachers and were spotlighted. They represented the Army. The band played the U.S. Army theme song, army vets stood and received a gift. Then the spotlight shone on the students representing the Coast Guard, then the Air Force, then the Navy. Each time a different pair of students were spotlighted, that branch of the military was described, its veterans were asked to stand, and their song was played.

Then the lights came back on and seventh grader Jessica Armour spoke again.

“We are your heritage,” she said to the veterans.

“We will continue to run the race you have so diligently run.”

“Thank you for being our hometown heroes.”