The community is invited to attend any one of several events being hosted throughout the district in commemoration of Veterans Day, Nov. 11, which falls this year on a Saturday. School-based events, which will take place on Friday, Nov. 10, are as follows:
At Benton Elementary, students from kindergarten through fifth grade will be performing a program thanking local veterans for their service at 1 p.m. In preparation for the program the students have spent library time learning about the meaning behind Veterans Day. Librarian Crystal Fox said that she wants students to understand and appreciate the difficult choice that veterans have made to serve. All veterans and their families are invited to attend.
Calvert City Elementary will be hosting a breakfast for veterans at 8:30 a.m. followed by a program at 9 a.m. The program will include a student-led Pledge of Allegiance, patriotic songs, two speakers, veteran recognition and trivia.
At Central Elementary, the second and third grades will be performing a musical program at 1 p.m., followed by a reception for all veteran guests.
North Marshall Middle School will be hosting a breakfast for veterans with a program to follow. The breakfast will begin at 7:45 a.m. and will include sausage balls made by the Shake and Bake Club alongside other breakfast items. The program will begin around 8:30 a.m. and will include recognition of veterans and their families, a student-read essay, singing of the national anthem and other patriotic songs and a speech by Tony Kitchen, a Navy veteran and current McCracken County circuit court judge. Families can also commemorate the day with a special photo opportunity.
Sharpe Elementary will be conducting a program at 10 a.m. The program has been planned by the fifth grade and will include essay readings, veteran recognition, a poetry reading and the national anthem. The students will also be showcasing projects that they developed that are designed to make a difference in the lives of veterans. Following the program, lunch will be served to the veterans and their families in attendance. Anyone is welcome to attend, but a special invitation is extended to the veteran family members of Sharpe’s fifth graders.
In addition to these upcoming community events, Jonathan Elementary third-fifth grade students performed a short musical presentation at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 7 that included poetry, haiku and musical performances of “America” and “The Star Spangled Banner.” Following the program, local veteran volunteers set up displays in the gym with mementos of their service to share with students.
Also, third, fourth and fifth grade students at South Marshall Elementary will have the opportunity to hear Chris McClure, a local veteran and parent, speak about his experiences in the military on Friday. However, this program is primarily for the benefit of the students and is not open to the public.
Veterans Day had its beginning as Armistice Day, which was established to commemorate the ceasefire that would eventually lead to the official end of World War I. The armistice went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month and was the end of hostilities in the Great War, or “the war to end all wars.” After World War II and the Korean War, Congress amended Armistice Day in 1954 to become Veterans Day, a day that officially honors American veterans of all wars.