Parents and Students Celebrate Service

Little feet crowded around the flagpole outside Thursday morning as students celebrated the nation's service men and women and learned more about the history of Veterans Day.

"As you know, today, boys and girls is Veterans Day and every year at West Annapolis we take time to celebrate Veterans Day because it's an honor to be an American, and we have so many people throughout our history who have given their lives...and devoted themselves to our country," Christine Stockett, the school's principal, said as she welcomed the students.

The ceremony started with some of the school's fifth graders raising the flag. After that, the "Star Spangled Banner" was sung.

Standing in the crowd were parents who had come to celebrate the day with their children. Many of the parents who were in the crowd are active members of the U.S. armed forces, and there were parents there representing all of the different military branches.

Among those in attendance was U.S. Navy Lt. Bryan Littin, whose 7-year-old son Andrew attends the school. Littin spoke to the students about the importance of honoring Veterans.

"Today we honor all the veterans, whether they served in wartime or peacetime," Littin said.

Littin told students about the history of the day, asked them about the different branches and told them that one of the biggest ways they can honor veterans is with a "thank you."

After that, parents who were in the military went around the group and introduced themselves. At the end, students said "thank you" and clapped.

As the ceremony drew to an end, the fourth and fifth grade chorus sang "You're a Grand Ole Flag." Then, students with parents in the military gathered in the gymnasium to have pictures taken with their parents in their uniforms.

Katie Huguenin, a staff sergeant in the U.S. Air Force, came to the event with her daughter Piper, who attends the school. Huguenin, who served in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom, said the ceremony lets Piper see that it's not just her family that serves in the military.

Piper said Veterans Day is special because "You let your mommy and daddy come over to school."

Stockett said the school has a Veterans Day Ceremony each year because it's important for students to understand the country's history.  It's part of the job of schools to "teach students to be good citizens of America," Stockett said.