4th Grade Teacher Honors Late Father's Veterans Day Tradition

WILMETTE, IL — Every year ahead of Nov. 11, Katy Kennedy's late father had a tradition. U.S. Army Sgt. Jerry Glenn Forsyth, a veteran of the Vietnam War, sent out Veterans Day cards to a list of 10 veterans to thank them for their service.

Before her father's death in August 2018, Kennedy found the list of names in his desk while going through paperwork.

"I asked him if I could keep doing it, and he said 'yes' but I got to follow these rules," said Kennedy, a teacher at Harper Elementary School in Wilmette. The main rule: The cards have to arrive before Veterans Day. "After he passed, I was still teaching in fourth grade, so I decided to try to reach out to more veterans than just 10."

That first November, Kennedy expanded the list to about 100 names with the help of parents and members of the school community. The list had increased to about 300 in 2019.

In 2020, Kennedy said, there are about 1,000 names on the list, which now includes military spouses. An online submission form shared widely online has helped add new names to the list.

Cards written by fourth graders and other students at the District 39 school have been sent across the country and, with about 100 active-duty service members on the list, to military installations abroad, Kennedy said.

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Depending on the age of the students, the cards may include writing, drawing or other art, she said. Each also includes a reminder of her father.

"They love stickers, and we've learned that the veterans love stickers, too," Kennedy told Patch. "And then in there's a commemorative image that's attached to the letter or drawing or art that just states that this is in memory of a tradition that Sgt. Jerry Glenn Forsyth started and certainly believed in, because I don't want people to misunderstand that I started it."

Kennedy credited the organizational and financial assistance of the local parent-teacher organization to coordinate the card campaign, which is taking place both in person and remotely this year. Students, she said, are enthusiastic about the project.

"It's funny because I will have teachers sign up, and they'll do them with their students, and they'll say to me, 'Oh my gosh Katy, my kids had so much fun doing that, and they enjoyed sharing their kindness with others, so can we have more names?'"

Kennedy recalled the remarks of a first grader after completing one of the cards.

"She said to me after she got done with her letter and sharing about her grandpa and great-grandpa, she was like, 'Mr. Lessner is really going to like my letter. He will. He definitely will.'" she said. "So it's something they really do love and enjoy doing."