On November 11th, the Marriotts Ridge High School (MRHS) community recognized America’s veterans on Veterans Day. Students made an effort to revive the student community’s pride and gratitude for their country and veterans. MRHS students want to make it their mission to not only celebrate veterans on Veterans Day, but everyday as a commemoration to the great bravery and dedication that they have shown to our nation.
Veterans Day, a day of recognition, was first celebrated through an event in 1947 organized by Raymond Weeks, a World War II veteran. Since then, Veterans Day has been celebrated in various ways, from parades to wreath-laying ceremonies. To some, properly recognizing and celebrating our veterans may seem hard. However, recognizing veterans is of the utmost importance according to students and staff. Some students feel that there should be more ways to appreciate and recognize veterans throughout the year.
The MRHS Armed Forces and Veteran Support Club is a club focused on helping active military service members and veterans. The club helps to provide another form of outreach for MRHS students with our United States military.
“Nowadays I do believe that veterans get more recognition and have access to more resources than they did in the past, but there is always more that can be done for the brave men and women who have made so many sacrifices for our country. The Armed Forces and Veteran Support Club actually work alongside an organization called Soldiers’ Angels to help provide that extra show of appreciation for our veterans and current service members,” said senior and club president Julia Lee.
Other students also suggested various other ways to show appreciation towards veterans. Students should indulge in the history of our nation and the big role that our veterans played in the protection and safety of our nation. Additionally, visiting monuments and memorials is a great way to take this first step to learn more about what our veterans have done for us.
There has been growing concern from many that recognizing our veterans for only a day may seem insufficient. Some suggest that similar to other dedicated months for other groups we have in our nation, our veterans also deserve recognition for more than just a day out of every year.
“I believe that veterans should be appreciated and celebrated everyday. Veterans Day is just a way to show a little extra love and support for those who have served our country,” said Lee.
We at MRHS hope to see more appreciation of veterans. Students have more than a day’s worth of appreciation to show our veterans. There are many other ways to show just how grateful you are to those who have served, and we urge students to look into these options to ensure that we regularly make our veterans feel loved and appreciated.
Lee encourages MRHS students interested in appreciating and recognizing our veterans to pop into a meeting with the MRHS Armed Forces and Veteran Support Club to learn how they can better help our veterans.