On Tuesday, November 10, Canton Middle School opened its doors to current and former U.S. military service men and women. The school presented a program to students and visitors that honored those who serve and have served in our American armed forces.

With principal Todd Barbee and Lead Teacher Amy Boswell as emcees, the PHS NJROTC Color Guard opened the ceremony (Megan Blevins, Julie Minervini, Mason Paye, Sean Meade, Catalina Perez, Faythe Hatherlee, Jonathan Huber, and Michael Nichols under the command of Chief Thomas Long) as those attending recited the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by the CMS Band, under the direction of Chris Ulery, playing the National Anthem. A stirring individual rifle drill was presented by Michael Nichols of the color guard, as well.

Moving into a series of video presentations, eighth grader Kennedy Sprinkle provided a brief history of the Veterans’ Day holiday, and then several current CMS students gave short video commentaries, excerpted from essays, telling what freedom and veterans mean to each of them individually.

Next, active duty USMC Captain Jonah Warren, a CMS and PHS alumnus and son of current CMS teacher Norma Warren, shared his video-recorded thoughts about serving in the U.S. armed forces today. Following that was a very special video interview of Canton native James Towe, a World War II veteran who served in the Navy and witnessed the raising of the American flag on Iwo Jima.

As a fitting exclamation point to Mr. Towe’s video, the CMS Chamber Singers then sang America the Beautiful, arranged and directed by Craig Summers.

Finally, the program closed with a salute to the service branches, as veterans were invited to stand for recognition as their service anthem was played, and then family pictures were shown of CMS students and staff posed with their loved ones who serve or have served.

A reception followed for the veterans in the school cafeteria.

Canton Middle School would like to extend its thanks to Pisgah High School and the NJROTC students who assisted with the program, as well as to the Canton community for supporting such a special and important program at the school.

Submitted by:  Bill Hunt, Canton Middle School