Revere High School honored veterans by holding an assembly and breakfast to which area veterans and their families from the community were invited.
Veterans Day is a national holiday celebrated on November 11 every year to honor all veterans who have served America. There are many different traditions that come with Veterans Day, and Revere High School has one of their own. Every year, members of the Revere community gather at the school to honor veterans with a breakfast planned by the student council, followed by an assembly with a guest speaker.
Jeff Fry, a history teacher at RHS, is one of the many people involved in the planning of this tradition. He gave a description of what Veterans Day is, specifically, who we celebrate and why we celebrate them.
“Veterans day is a day nationally that we celebrate people who served our country . . . selflessly sacrificing their time, their energy, their bodies, everything for their country,” Fry said.
Fry spoke about the planning of the tradition and when they start to dedicate time to put all the pieces together. He said how they need about two months to get it put together so they start the process around 9/11.
When asked about whether or not he thinks this tradition will stay at RHS, Fry showed his enthusiasm for the event and explained that he wants it to. He talked about how it incorporates many different elements of the Revere community including the choir, band, orchestra, student council and even first graders from Richfield Elementary School.
“It is a special day because it . . . encapsulates a lot of things,” Fry said.
Fry talked about what Veterans Day means to him and how important the day is. He brought up his freedoms, and how they came from all the veterans that fought for America.
“Veterans Day is one of the most important days of the year to me because it makes me reflect on all of the rights that I have as an American that other people sacrificed for me to have,” Fry said.
Jack Cooper, a retired RHS teacher, is the mastermind behind the tradition. Many people credited him as the reason why the event first started. Cooper began as a teacher at Bath Elementary School where they held a tradition of their own. He describes how the tradition transitioned to take place at the high school and how he got involved.
“At the close of the 2000-2001 school year, I was notified that I was being transferred from Bath Elementary School to Revere High School. Before school started, I was contacted by the new RHS principal, Mr. Lee Walker. He asked if I would be willing to continue planning the Veterans Day assembly at RHS,” Cooper said.
Some traditions take a while to gain success and make an impression on people. When asked if this was the case for the Veteran’s Day assembly, Cooper said it took off and never slowed down. He talked about how the addition of new elements throughout the years have made it such a unique assembly.
“I would have to say that it was an immediate hit. It took several years to bring it to the level it has been for the past seventeen or eighteen years, adding things such as the color guard, the POW/MIA ceremony and the band’s playing the tribute to each branch of the military,” Cooper said.
Cooper addressed the importance of this assembly to the students of RHS and how it impacts them. He talked about how monumental the day is, and how students can now see Veteran’s Day in a different light.
“When attending the assembly, they get to see and hear of times of war, of which many have never seen. They are exposed to history in a visual way,” Cooper said.
Now that Cooper is retired, he no longer assists in the planning of the breakfast, although he has attended some of the assemblies since his retirement. He talked about how he misses being involved in it, and catches himself reminiscing about the tradition.
“While I am very much enjoying my retirement, around the end of September I find myself thinking about what I would be doing for Veterans Day . . . while I am extremely proud that the legacy continues, I find myself somewhat sad that I am no longer part of the planning,” Cooper said.
One of the biggest parts of the assembly is the guest speaker. Cooper talked about how there was not a guest speaker at the start of the tradition, and how it now allows the students to see the personal experience veterans have gone through. This year’s speaker was Lieutenant Shawn McKee. He touched on his past experience and gave insight onto different fields of his expertise.
“[I] was in the Marine Corp twenty years, retired from the lieutenant [colonel] role, [and] I was a helicopter pilot,” McKee said.
McKee talked about his academics after high school and all that he had to complete to get to where he is now. Most do not know about the time it takes to get into the Marine Corp and all of the education, as well as training, that goes into it.
“First at the Naval Academy, it’s a four year college so you have all the academics you have in normal college. I was an engineering major for Naval Architecture, which is like mechanical engineering, but then on top of that you have leadership classes,” McKee said.
McKee addressed some of the challenges that he had to face, one being the weather. He talked about being outside all the time and having to deal with the struggles that came with it, such as waking up with a foot of snow on him.
He talked about what he now does since retiring which is quite different from his position in the Marine Corp, but they do have similarities such as the leadership needed for both jobs.
“I work in the natural gas industry . . . so we collect all the gas and process it and then send it to people’s houses,” McKee said.
McKee addressed how although the Marine Corp came with challenges, he does miss it.
“I definitely miss aspects of the Marine Corp. Friendships and things like that,” McKee said.
McKee also talked about the tradition at RHS and how it impacts the veterans that attended. He talked about the positive impact that the assembly has on all of the veterans and family members there.
“I think the veterans absolutely love it. It’s very moving and it’s really cool that the school takes the time and effort to put that together and honor them,” McKee said.
He talked about how this experience impacted him and what he felt during, as well as after, the assembly.
“It was really touching for sure. And then my wife even said when we walked in and everyone was clapping, she kind of got brought to tears since it’s very, very moving,” McKee said.
RHS had held the Veteran’s Day tradition for years, and it is intended to be around for many more. It impacts everyone in attendance and helps honor all those that have fought for our country.
