In lead up to Veterans Day on November 11, a group of Veterans paid a visit to Beach Middle School to share their stories with students.

The visit, which was organized as a panel with the Veterans talking to the students, was held on Oct. 24 at Beach. The Sun Times News (STN) reached out to Principal Matt Ceo to ask about it.

Ceo said all of the credit goes to teacher Amy Doma for organizing the panel.

“I will say that Amy has organized this before, and I know that the connection between the Chelsea School District and our Veterans is something we value deeply,” Ceo said. “Several of our staff members have served in the military, and our building is named after a four-star general in the United States Army. Service, advocacy, and courage are characteristics we try to instill in all of our students, and Amy’s work has helped support our goals!”

Doma told STN that the idea for this started last year.

“Jennifer Smith (of the Chelsea Senior Center) asked me if our sixth graders wanted to be a part of Chelsea’s Veterans Day activities last year, starting with bringing a few Veterans into Beach to share their life stories with students,” Doma said. “Last years’ students said we absolutely must do it again, so we did!”

There were four Veterans on the panel and in addition to their stories they were asked for life lessons as well.

Here are the veterans and the lessons they gave:

Captain Jim Alford: “Believe in yourself; work hard.”

Lieutenant Colonel Sara So: “Your people are out there somewhere- If you change who you are, you’ll only get farther away from your people. Be true to yourself.”

Lieutenant Caleb Coon: (also an 8th grade science teacher at Beach) “Be too stubborn to quit what you’re doing.”

Major Matt Kellogg: “Be tenacious; keep trying.”

As to the goals for having the panel, Doma said their classroom goals (in Global Studies) focused on learning about the history of Veterans Day and the sacrifices service men and women have given to our country. Students also wrote letters of appreciation (in Language Arts) that the Chelsea Senior Center’s writers club will read. Three winners will be chosen and they will be invited to the Ceremony on the 11th to read their letters. 

“The final goal was to begin the work of teaching our students how to be attentive, active listeners,” Doma said. “We have a year-long goal of fostering the soft skills of empathy and true, focused listening with others.”

STN was able to connect with a Beach student as well to ask about his view of the panel and what he learned. Beach student Nolan Pauley gave us his perspective.

When asked about the panel, Nolan said, “I feel like I’ve changed a little bit after hearing the Veterans’ stories. I can be brave about small things, while they are brave in bigger ways.”

As far as what he learned, he said, “I learned to try new things and that we can support our Veterans.”  

Photos: A group of Veterans paid a visit to Chelsea to talk with middle school students. Photos courtesy of Beach Middle School