World War II veterans will be the guests of honor on a memorable trip to Washington, DC at no cost to them thanks to the efforts of Hickory Creek Middle School students, families and faculty.
The school’s seventh grade students participated in a special Veterans Day program on November 11. They presented a check in the amount of $7,323.34 to Honor Flight Chicago that will sponsor a number of veterans for the trip. Honor Flight Chicago is a non-profit organization that was founded to recognize veterans, most specifically World War II veterans, with a day of honor, remembrance and celebration at their memorial in Washington, D.C.
The seventh grade class raised the funds through a coin collecting effort, Aurelio’s pizza hot lunch sales and flag sales. Honor Flight Chicago will use the funds to fly a number of World War II veterans from Midway Airport in Chicago to Washington, DC to be honored for serving their country. Many World War II veterans are on the waiting list to take the flight. Read Boeckel, Secretary for Honor Flight Chicago, and World War II veteran Evert Bergquist were at the assembly to accept the check from the students. More information about the Honor Flight Chicago organization is at www.honorflightchicago.org.
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Following a Color Guard presentation by the Boy Scouts of America and the Pledge to the Flag, Hickory Creek Principal Dr. Kevin Suchinski spoke about his honor to serve as an Honor Flight guardian two years ago for World War II veterans Bill Tiffen and Harold Halsten. He stated, “On that trip I learned an important lesson. I learned the importance of giving thanks to our veterans, not just on Veterans Day but on every single day.” Teacher Tricia Dotson asked students to consider the sacrifices that veterans have made on behalf of our country. Many Lincoln-Way area veterans were in attendance and some of them spoke about their experiences while serving our nation. The students recognized the veterans with bursts of applause after they spoke and also presented them with a gift. The cheerleaders did a cheer for veterans and a patriotic song was performed by the students under the direction of Music Instructor David Wonder.
The students and veterans also viewed a reenactment of the children’s story “America’s White Table” by Margot Theis Raven. Hickory Creek seventh grade staff members Sue Kazmierczak, Tonia Gatsios, Jane DeHaan and Mitch Stein presented this tribute to fallen service members.
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Students at all three of the District 157-C schools observed Veterans Day through a number of activities held throughout the school day. In the evening, the Hickory Creek Middle School band also presented its annual Fall Band Showcase and Fundraiser, with a Veterans Day observation held in cooperation with the Village of Frankfort and Mayor Jim Holland as emcee.
