Local veterans who served in the armed forces uniforms both stateside or on foreign lands felt honored during a patriotic themed assembly hosted Monday morning at Virginia Parks Elementary School in celebration of Veterans Day.
Students at the school honored five veterans who showed up during a special schoolwide assembly in the gym. School officials sent home notices with students inviting dads, uncles and other relatives who serve in the military to attend but this year there was no response.
Ceres American Legion Commander Pete Samaniego reflected on the longstanding tradition of the school honoring veterans at an annual assembly, noting that some of the students who sat on the floor years ago have already graduated from college.
Samaniego joined the Marine Corps and served from 1971 to 1977. His jobs varied from MP to office clerk, to Marine barracks security. He spent his entire re-enlistment duty at the Naval Weapons Station at Port Chicago in Concord.
After the presentation of colors by the American Legion Post 491 Color Guard, Student Council officers read a statement explaining how Veteran’s Day came about after World War I.
Students sang enthusiastic renditions of patriotic songs, including “God Bless America,” “This Land is Your Land,” “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” and “You’re a Grand Old Flag.”
Veteran Dave Pratt who served in the Navy from 1966 to 1970 in Vietnam, said the veterans dropped the tradition of the American Legion Honor Guard firing a 21-gun salute outside the gym because of the sensitivity school shootings and the scare it might bring to the community.
John Warren served in the Navy and went to Vietnam twice on a destroyer which followed aircraft carriers around “and made sure they didn’t get into trouble.”
“My job was navigating the ship which sometimes included steering the ship,” said Warren.
R. Craig Bagley, a chaplain of the Hughson American Legion Post, served in the Air Force from 1968 to 1972, mostly stationed in Alaska for North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). He and wife Susan joined the Air Force on the buddy system. She became the first woman named as “Airman of the Year.”
Also participating was Spencer Ferrington, another member of the American Legion Post.
Today is a school holiday due to Veteran’s Day.
