(November 18th, 2019 — Jersey City) On Thursday, November 14th, the Student Council and Peer Leaders visited VFW Post 2294 to bring breakfast to the veterans and spend time with them.
The visited included students reading thank you letters, reciting poems, and spending time talking with the vets.
Mr. Tony Goodson spoke with the students about his experience being drafted, fighting in Vietnam and what life has been like as a veteran since. Superintendent Ms. Amy Lin-Rodriguez joined the students for the visit and spoke about her time working with Mr. Goodson, specifically bringing up the courageous work he did during the days after 9/11. Additionally, Ms. Lin- Rodriguez encouraged the students to continue honoring the legacy of all veterans.
“This is the 10th year Explore Middle School has brought ‘Doing Our Best for the Vets’ to the Samuel R Shelton VFW 2294 Post and it has been a pleasure every single year to see our students converse with the veterans to better understand the sacrifices they have made. We salute and thank Commander Tony Goodson, former Explore teacher, along with his comrades for a job well done,” states Ms. Michele Jefferey.
7th Grader Melike shared, “I was surprised to learn that when Mr. Goodson came back from Vietnam, it was very hard because of the political climate. He explained that during that time period in American history, things were tense because of the war and people blamed servicemen for their involvement. So for a very long time he and other vets didn’t talk about their experiences, get help they may have needed or embrace life as a veteran.”
Thank you to VFW Post 2294 and Mr. Goodson, Ms. Michele Jefferey, Supervisor Jamie Velazquez, Ms. Michelene Calabrese, Ms. Angela Marie Cirillo, Chef Danny, Mr. Mario Rodriguez, and the culinary team for making the wonderful day a success.
And once again, thank you to all veterans everywhere for their service and dedication.
To view coverage of the visit from HudsonTV visit: hudsontv.com/explore-middle-school-students-pay-tribute-to-jersey-city-veterans
