Photo By Spc. Elijah Campbell | The 10th Mountain Division Band plays for 4th and 5th-grade students at Indian River...... read more read more
Subscribe
PHILADELPHIA, N.Y. (June 14, 2023) – Children and parents sit and await the Flag Day celebration in the Indian River Intermediate School gym in Philadelphia, New York, as the 10th Mountain Division Band performs and a color guard displays the colors.
More than 80% of the enrollment of IRIS is composed of the sons and daughters of Fort Drum Soldiers. The students prepared for Flag Day by practicing musical pieces that they were learning in their music classes. They also wrote essays and poems to show what America means to them.
“I've been in this district for 14 years, and Flag Day has always been a huge event district wide,” said Principal Carrie Smith. “I really think it's our connection to Fort Drum. We really like to celebrate that and teach children the importance of why that flag is here for us in this country and its connections and its symbolism and what it means.”
Many children come from all over the world to the United States, and celebrations like Flag Day serve to connect them to their peers. The event also teaches children about diversity and being unified by respect for the flag.
“We are celebrating Flag Day to honor all that it stands for,” said Vice Principal Stephanie Widrick. “Our freedoms are sacrifices that have been made by so many, our love for our country and all that it embodies as part of being an American here in the United States.”
The basic design of the Stars and Stripes – as it is known today – was adopted by the Continental Congress on June 14, 1777, as the official flag of the United States. The flag is intertwined with the history of the nation. The 50 stars of today’s flag symbolize each state in the Union, and the 13 stripes represent the original 13 colonies.
Students at IRIS participated in a writing competition for the best Flag Day essay and poem.
“America means to me, loyalty,” said KarLee Chartrand, a student and competitor at Indian River Intermediate School. “Loyalty because our military is loyal to our country; they’re loyal because they sacrifice their lives for us and our freedom.”
People from different backgrounds can glean kindred messages from the nation’s flag.
“What America means to me is heroism, bravery, and courage that every Soldier has endured while training and deploying for war,” said Eli Sewonu, another student and competitor at Indian River Intermediate School.
| Date Taken: | 06.14.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 06.15.2023 08:53 |
| Story ID: | 447194 |
| Location: | FORT DRUM, NEW YORK, US |
| Web Views: | 103 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Indian River Intermediate School celebrates Flag Day, by SPC Elijah Campbell, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
