First graders honor veterans at special event

By Kelcy Dolan

Posted 11/17/15

A group of veterans attended a small, but special ceremony on Friday afternoon at Hoxsie Elementary.

When veterans, dignitaries and educational leaders entered the school, an honor guard made up …

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First graders honor veterans at special event

HONORED: Mariah Kidd focused on how brave veterans were to serve our country in her essay. All of the essays were pasted on colorings of cartoon servicemen and -women. Kidd read in front of (from left) Superintendent Philip Thornton, Army Staff Sergeant Paul Hulkow Jr., Hoxsie staff member and former Marine John Ricci as well as Senator Jack Reed, a former Army Ranger.

FAMILY AFFAIR: Students in Tracy Mollock’s first grade class were asked to invite their family members who had or are serving in the United States military to attend a ceremony to honor their service. From left are Madison Tuirok with her father Army Sergeant James Tuirok, Emily Newton, Connor Tremmel with his grandfather, Navy Chief Petty Officer Russell Luce, Joshua Martini with his grandfather Army Sergeant Richard Cole, Tracy Mollock with Kenneth Johnson, a former Marine and father to a Hoxsie teacher, Aniyah Albert with her uncle, Army Staff Sergeant Paul Hulkow Jr., and Jacob Humphrey, who lives next door to Hulkow.

DADDY’S LIL’ GIRL: Madison Tuirok spent the ceremony with her father, James Tuirok, who served in the Army as a sergeant. She even read him her essay and presented him with a toy model airplane painted in army colors.

Posted Tuesday, November 17, 2015 3:00 pm

By Kelcy Dolan

A group of veterans attended a small, but special ceremony on Friday afternoon at Hoxsie Elementary.

When veterans, dignitaries and educational leaders entered the school, an honor guard made up of students from all grades waving small American flags welcomed them.

The lines led guests to Tracy Mollock’s first grade classroom, where students had prepared short essays about why they were thankful for the veterans in their lives.

The veterans in attendance included parents, grandparents and uncles of both students and staff. Senator Jack Reed, Mayor Scott Avedisian and Superintendent Philip Thornton also attended the ceremony.

In addition to writing essays the students also put together small wooden toy airplanes that they painted with the different colors of the various military branches. Every guest was presented with one of the airplanes after all the students read their brief essay out loud.

Gary McCoombs, principal at Hoxsie Elementary, said, “Everyone knows a veteran, whether it’s a parent, grandparent or a family friend. This experience is good for our kids. To give this personal touch and show appreciation is good for them and our vets.”

Mollock said her students threw themselves into this project and were happy to help their fellow students and put on the best ceremony they could for the veterans.

“I only brought everything together,” she said. “They did all the work. This project meant a lot to them and they showed a lot of initiative.”

The veterans at the ceremony were Army Staff Sergeant Paul Hulkow Jr., Army Sergeant Richard Cole, Navy Chief Petty Officer Russell Luce, Army Sergeant James Tuirok and former Marines John Ricci, who works at Hoxsie, and Kenneth Johnson, a parent to a teacher at Hoxsie as well as Reed, a former Army Ranger and the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. All of the veterans commented on how nice it was to hear that students not only recognized servicewomen but also understood the importance of honoring veterans at such a young age.

Luce said, “They just did a great job overall. It was really nice to hear them thank us.”