The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Veterans speak to elementary students
Madison Avenue Elementary is determined to make the last year in their original building one to remember.
Their final year before they relocate has seen the Riverside school embark on a “Come Back, Give Back, Look Forward” campaign that sees past students returning to inspire current students with their own futures.
The year-long campaign and its message was best typified Nov. 12, this Veterans Day observance, when former alum and current Military Police Officer James Marizek appeared on a projection screen to talk and answer questions for the students.
Marizek is currently stationed at Fort Benning and was an unexpected addition to the day’s festivities.
Originally, Sally HuraytDolenc, another school alum and active member in the armed forces, was scheduled to speak but was unable to connect in time to appear.
Thanks to the quick thinking of Principal Traci Shantery, Marizek’s mother, who was also in attendance, was able to make the last minute change. Marizek spoke to the students from his quarters at Fort Benning. Students from the school’s fifth-grade class then asked Marizek a series of questions that sought to get a better understanding of what a soldier actually does.
Also in the crowd was Tech Sgt. Michael Stokes, whose own children currently attend Madison Avenue Elementary. Stokes fielded questions from the students, including from his own son, and received the biggest reception when he revealed that he plays Fortnite.
His time before the students and faculty was also bittersweet when Shantery explained that Stokes will be redeployed this December and will miss both Christmas and his young son’s birthday in January.
The sacrifice of both Stokes and his family was a grounding lesson to the students and underscored the ripples that can be felt throughout an entire family, and subsequently a community, when men and women answer the call to serve.
In an interview, Shantery underscored why the conversations that Marizek and Stokes held with the children are so critical to the school’s broader goals.
“Our purpose, as educators, is to show the students the opportunities that exist for them, and teach them in such a way that allows them to gain the confidence and motivation to go after those opportunities,” she said. “This experience also teaches the students about all the job opportunities that exist in the military.”