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Students at Blackburn Elementary welcome veterans at last year's Veterans Day Ceremony.
Lumpkin County High School has been holding a ceremony to honor local veterans for at least the last 20 years. It will do so again this year (see article, Page 2C), but Lumpkin’s middle and elementary schools have joined in the day’s celebration.
LONGBRANCH ELEMENTARY
Longbranch’s Veterans Day Parade has been honoring veterans for five years. Students take their family’s veterans on a tour of one of the main halls to see all the photos of veterans that have been collected over that time, then accompany them on a parade around the circular hall from one end to the other while teachers, staff and other students honor them with applause.
“We want the day to be fun for them,” said organizer Kim Cromer, LBES 1st grade teacher. “They don’t have to do anything but show up and let us honor them.”
Show up, and enjoy the light breakfast provided following the parade. This year veterans and their children and/or grandchildren will gather in the school’s newly remodeled library to enjoy the lunchroom staff’s “amazing cinnamon rolls that they are making especially for the breakfast,” Cromer said.
Veterans are asked to arrive around 7:45 a.m.as the parade kicks off about 8 a.m.
LUMPKIN COUNTY ELEMENTARY
“It’s been a real collaborative effort,” said Kathy Hill, LCES 5th grade social studies teacher about the school’s second year of putting on a program for the veterans in the lives of their students.
Hill had her students interview a vet from their family and make a poster to present to them during the school’s program. Language Arts instructor Margaret Bennett had her students write poems about veterans. Music teacher Amanda Barton and parent Chuck Bell took the poems and set the poems to music, which will be presented during the event.
All the activities are preceded by a flag presentation.
A light breakfast will be served.
“I’m so proud of these kids,” Hill said. “They do the whole thing.”
Both veterans and active duty military in the lives of LCES students are welcome to attend.
BLACKBURN ELEMENTARY
Blackburn sends out invitations to students’ families, inviting veterans to a program Nov. 11, 9-10 a.m. “Usually there are lots of veterans who attend,” said school principal Dr. Betsy Green.
The program includes a veteran speaking about freedom and its cost; group and individual musical presentations and the reading of and student essay on what it means to be a veteran from each grade.
LUMPKIN COUNTY MIDDLE
All 8th graders are taken to the high school to attend the Veterans Day Celebration there. Lower grades have their own program at the middle school.
This is the third year of the middle school program, said school counselor Kayla Dingesss. Veterans of students are invited to a luncheon in their honor Friday, Nov. 8, during all student lunch tracts from 10:30 a.m.-1:5 p.m. in the LCMS cafeteria on a stage decorated to celebrate the vets.
“We ask all students to send in pictures of their veterans with information and create a slideshow to play through all lunch tracks to honor their service,” Dingess said. “This allows students to participate even if their family member can’t make it to the luncheon.”
Veterans who attend are introduced and receive a card and gift.
“We advertise the luncheon through our school social media outlets, phone alls home, etc., so it is presented as veterans coming each lunch with their student, although we will not turn away any veteran who wants to joins us—even if they do not have a student at the middle school,” Dingess said.
Guests must sign in at the front office.