Washington High School students served a warm meal to veterans on Monday to help honor their service to the United States of America and celebrate Veterans Day.
With many programs, meals and assemblies over the weekend, veterans were treated to some delicious food and festivities. Washington High School, who has held a Veterans Day assembly in the past, wanted to continue honoring veterans into this week with a lunch held at the school. Members of the freshmen through junior student council served a meal of chicken and noodles, mashed potatoes, carrots, fruit and a dessert.
“The thing we find with our assembly is that it is very formal,” Washington High School Principal Tracy Rose said Monday. “There is nothing wrong with that, but veterans get formal all the time. What we wanted to do was create an atmospheric environment where, one, our kids are serving those who served us and our country, and two, the kids have the interaction with veterans. A lot of our kids just want to go around and say ‘Thank you.’ For these guys when they come into the assembly, they see everyone, they hear the applause and then they leave and may not speak to anyone. The one thing I am seeing here today, and something some of our kids wanted, was that personal interaction.”
Following the lunch, Ed Helt (Americanism chairman of the American Legion Post 25), students and other veterans gathered at Liberty Hall for the announcement of the annual 50-question Americanism and Government test winners. This year at Washington High School, the winners were sophomores Brynne Frederick and Brice Bullis, juniors Taylor Smith and Jacob Welsh and seniors Abigail Sever and Cody Riley. Presenting the awards and McDonald’s restaurant gift cards were Debbie Baughn and Dave Frederick. Helt thanked both of the presenters and other long-time supporters of the test, including the Fayette County Veterans Service Office and Commission, and Nick Epifano, owner of the Fayette County McDonald’s Restaurants.
“It’s rewarding to see students take initiative and serve the veterans, talk to the veterans, ask them questions,” Washington High School Student Council Advisor Ryan Day said. “It has been even more rewarding to see non-student council students come down and thank them. We tried to make a point to the student body that the veterans would be here today and that they can take a moment to go down and meet with them. We had a lot of kids do that. The cafeteria generously set up our buffet style table, made the food and all we had to do is distribute it. It has been a real team effort.”
Several of the veterans in attendance voiced their pleasure with the lunch. Frederick, chaplain at the American Legion Post 25, said he thought it was really different and that he enjoyed it.
