By Sophia Li

Veterans Day, the day when veterans come together to tell each other their stories, and the people thank them. Here at BBES, we added a little twist. In a ceremony with songs, speeches, and art, we thanked our custodian, Mr. Sam Bullock, and we gathered photos of family members who served our country 

I asked Mrs. Vitale, one of the collaborators who made the event so special along with Mrs. Maggio, what motivated her to gather all these veteran photographs. She answered with, “My dad was a veteran of the US Army.  He passed away when I was seventeen and I am always so proud to share his photo and memory on Veteran’s Day. I knew right away when I teamed up with Mrs. Maggio that I wanted to find a way for myself and others to share our pictures and memories. It provides such an immense sense of pride.”

I was curious as to what her reaction was while she was gathering all these pictures. Ms.Vitale replied with,”It was heartwarming to see our faculty and staff share such meaningful people in their lives. Every time I thought we had received all of the pictures someone would come running up to us and happily ask if they still had time to share a picture of a loved one. I loved looking through them, it was so nice to learn how many of us have family members who have served our country. Everyone was really proud to share pictures and stories. It was emotional in a good way. Taking the time to share pride in loved ones.”

We especially thanked one person who has always been a part of our community and who has served for our country. Mr. Sam, our head custodian. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Army National Guard  for 7 years. The whole school came together to thank Mr. Sam. Henry DiZefalo and I, Sophia Li, read letters we had written to Mr. Sam. Students created a “stepping stone garden” for him near the playground.

“Thank you for risking your life to protect the United States of America. I know it was hard work. Thank you for taking care of our school, too. We all love seeing you every day,” Henry said.

Second graders, under the direction of Mrs. Zaccaro, sang a patriotic song. The school chorus sang, and students presented Mr. Sam with flowers, a hat, and a gift card.

“I was so happy to witness our wonderful teachers and students display such creative and kind ways to pay respect to our veterans,” Mrs. Vitale said. “They all did an amazing job! It helped make the day even more special.”