Kirt Manion
kmanion@cherryroad.com
An occasion of gratitude brought students, teachers and members of the Syracuse community together on Monday, Nov. 11, to honor America’s heroes as part of the 71st annual Veterans Day observance at the Syracuse Middle School gym.
Syracuse student representatives Will Janssen and Bryan Morquecho led a celebration which featured a talk by veteran and featured speaker Ron Helton.
Other aspects of the celebration included the singing of the National Anthem by Will Janssen and musical presentations by the Syracuse High School Band and Choir.
Patriot’s Pen and Voice of Democracy contest winners were also announced at the event.
Ron Helton, a veteran with a service career spanning 32 years and featuring multiple overseas deployments was introduced to the assemblage by Bryan Morquecho.
Helson, a native of Wisconsin, joined the Air Force after graduating high school in 1981. After moving to Nebraska, Helton served in the Nebraska Army National Guard and retired from service in 2014. Currently, Helton serves as a bus driver for Syracuse schools.
Bryan noted that Ron is beloved by the students that he drives to school.
“We are extremely lucky to have Ron in our community,” Bryan said.
When thinking about what to say during his speech, Ron said he thought about the nuts and bolts of his career but came to decide on a different tact for his talk.
“I originally was going to come in and I was going to talk about everything that I did throughout my 32-year career,” Ron said, adding that, upon further reflection, he wanted to talk about how his experiences made him reflect on the meaning of Veterans Day and the gratitude that Americans have for the service of those who choose careers in the military.
During his deployments, Ron said he witnessed destruction and loss for people who didn’t have the freedom to prosper or prioritize their youth as Americans do.
He experienced separation from his family as he wasn’t always able to communicate with those left back at home.
And he witnessed the hurts of war by helping evacuate and care for wounded service members and by experiencing loss with the death of a fellow Nebraskan in Staff Sergeant Patrick Hamburger, one of 30 Americans killed when their Chinook helicopter was shot down.
In looking back at his career, Ron said he wouldn’t change anything that he did in those 32 years of service. In reflecting, he knows what that service aimed to accomplish.
“Every day, we want to make sure that you have your rights to be able to reflect, choose and continue your freedoms,” Ron said. “It’s a profession, but it’s a sacrifice. I am looking in this audience and seeing so many of the people who are here right now who did the sacrifice. I want to thank you all personally.”
At the beginning of the event, both Will Janssen and Bryan Morquecho talked about the importance of honoring the nation’s service members on Veterans Day.
Will Janssen
This year marks the 71st anniversary of the Veterans Day celebration. On this day, we recognize the men and women who have served our great nation. Even though there is only one day a year designated to honor these brave men and women, we all should remember everyday how much they have sacrificed for us here back home. The sacrifice these men and women have made will have an everlasting impact on each and every one of us.
Ronald Reagan said, “Veterans know better than anyone else the price of freedom for they have suffered the scars of war. We can offer them no better tribute than to protect what they have won for us.”
Being here today, you are doing your part in paying tribute to the brave men and women who have fought and given their lives, for not only for our country but for each and every one of us here today.
Freedom is not granted. We need to continue to show the utmost respect and gratitude for our veterans, living and deceased. Today, we celebrate all the individuals who work to keep our great nation the land of the free and the home of the brave. To all veterans who came back home and to the ones who didn’t make it back home, thank you! These individuals are our neighbors, friends, fathers, mothers, grandparents and loved ones. We are thankful for their service and their sacrifice for this country. To all those veterans in attendance today and to those who couldn’t attend, remember that every day all of us here are thankful for your service and sacrifice.
Bryan Morquecho
I would like to thank everyone for coming. It is great to see so many familiar faces in the stands. Nov. 11 is a special day because it is the day that we celebrate our veterans.
It is the day that we recognize the sacrifices that were made and that continue to be made by the men and women who have served in our military. It is a day to express gratitude for the courage, dedication and selflessness that these individuals have shown.
The sacrifices have given society the freedoms and rights that are given to everyone and cannot be taken away from anyone. I would like to formally say thank you to all our veterans on my behalf and on behalf of everyone in the stands for living with the constant burdens of war.
Representatives from VFW and VFW Auxiliary introduced the winners of the Patriot’s Pen Essay Contest and the Voice of Democracy Contest. A total of 44 students entered the contests with entries judged by local volunteers.
One judge commented, “Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read and listen to such creative and uplifting presentations. Every student who participated had insight on the theme. It is so exciting to feel the passion of these people.”
The Patriot’s Pen Essay Contest is open to kids grade 6-8 with prizes awarded at the local, district, state and national level. This year’s theme was “My Voice in America’s Democracy?”
Mckenzie Jones, 1st Place **
Tyleigh Miller, 2nd Place **
Brynlynn Borer, 3rd Place
The Voice of Democracy Contest is an audio as well as a written essay contest open to kids in grades 9-12 with prizes awarded at the local, district, state and national level. This year’s theme: “Is America Today Our Forefather’s Vision?”
Preston Rumery, 1st Place **
Brenna Sayer, 2nd Place
Colton Sprague, 3rd Place
** Advance to District judging
