Students Recognize Soldiers' Sacrifices

Millstone Examiner - Millstone, NJ, USA

Veterans group initiates new partnership with schools

BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP Staff Writer

Millstone Township Middle School students are learning more about the sacrifices that military personnel and their families make during wartime.

The Veterans of the Vietnam War Inc. and the Veterans Coalition New Jersey Post 03, of Millstone, have partnered with the middle school to present students with an educational program about prisoners of war and soldiers missing in action.

"Freedom is not free. It comes at a cost," Richard Brody, commander of New Jersey Post 03, told students during an assembly Jan. 15. "It comes at the sacrifice of soldiers all over the world and at the sacrifice of families who wait at home while their loved ones are gone."

There are currently 1.4 million United States military personnel serving in 40 countries around the world, according to Brody.

The assembly, presented by Brody and fellow veterans Bill Nurko, a Millstone resident who served as captain in the U.S. Navy Reserve, and Dewey Johnson, a Lumberton resident who served as a sergeant in Iraq from 2004 to 2005, was a follow-up session to a previous lesson taught by Barry Rosenzweig, a Freehold resident who served as sergeant first class in the U.S. Army.

When Rosenzweig, a former principal who worked in the Jackson Township School District, retired, he put together a lesson plan for teaching schoolchildren the meaning of the prisoners of war/ missing in action (POW/MIA) flags. He has been presenting the program in Jackson schools since 1999 and this year started the program in the Millstone school district.

The program teaches students that the wife of a soldier who went missing in action during the Vietnam War created the POW/MIA flag in 1971.

"A year went by and the soldier's wife hadn't heard about her husband," Brody said. "She wasn't getting answers from the U.S. military or the government, and wanted something to wave to get their attention."

Rosenzweig also teaches students that all of the symbols on the flag have meaning. The silhouette represents a U.S. soldier. The tower in the background is a watchtower with a Vietnamese soldier keeping a lookout. The barbed wire signifies that the soldier is being kept against his will. The half of the laurel wreath in the foreground pays homage to a tradition the ancient Greeks started by placing such wreaths on the heads of heroes who returned home from war.

In the follow-up session, Brody noted that the choice of black and white for the flag was intentional to depict that "there is no gray area" when it comes to the issue.

"We know there are prisoners of war and soldiers missing in action out there," he said.

Students also learned from Brody about Joint Prisoners of War, Missing in Action Accounting Command (JPAC), which consists of teams of people who go out to various countries and look for prisoners of war and soldiers missing in action.

During the first session of the educational program, students are asked to go home and speak to their parents about family members and friends who have served in the military. They are also asked to write letters to families with soldiers who are prisoners of war or missing in action. The follow-up program tests students' knowledge of the information presented in the earlier session, gives them the opportunity to listen to veterans, and allows them to hand in their letters.

Sixth-grader Christa Lebers wrote to the family of Bruce Edward Kane, a Marine missing in action.

"I hope that one day he will be properly rested so you, your family and Bruce will be at peace," Christa wrote.

Sixth-grader Douglas Jeffery wrote to the family of Frederic Woodrow Knapp, who went missing in action while serving in the Navy.

"If I was ever able to meet Frederic, I would be honored and say thank you for serving our country and making it a better place," Douglas wrote. "Frederic will never give up hope on coming home and you never have to give up hope. People are and always will be looking for him."

Sixth-grader Dean Apostolico wrote to the family of James B. Mills, who also went missing while on Navy duty. Dean told the family that his grandfather was a prisoner of war for a year during World War II. He said his grandfather died a couple of years after returning home from the war.

"You, James and all of the other prisoners of war and people who are MIA will never be forgotten," Dean wrote. "I know how hard it is to not know where somebody you love is. However, I never lose hope in seeing my loved one and you shouldn't either. I pray that one day you are reunited with your loved one. He is a true American hero."

During the assembly, Johnson spoke about the protective vest that he wore during combat that saved his life when an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated, launching shrapnel at him.

"If I didn't have the vest on, I probably wouldn't be here," Johnson said. He allowed a group of students and sixthgrade social studies teacher Naura Sheehan to try his vest and helmet on. Sheehan said, "It's very heavy," as Johnson placed the helmet over her ponytail and Brody explained that all soldiers, even those in Iraq who face 140-degree temperatures in the desert during the day, have to wear the equipment for protection.

Overall, the program aims to get schoolchildren to better appreciate what men and women in the military do while serving the country and to respect veterans.

"If you see a veteran or a soldier, you should go up to them and thank them," Brody said before the veterans ended the program with a hand salute to the students and teachers who welcomed them into their school.

The Veterans of the Vietnam War Inc. and the Veterans Coalition New Jersey Post 03 is part of a Pennsylvania-based nonprofit founded in 1978 to seek help to further the cause of all veterans. The New Jersey post is dedicated to helping veterans in need and provides services and contacts for both able-bodied and disabled veterans. The group works to teach the public about both life in the military and life as a veteran. The group also works with other posts to build group homes for soldiers who need help transitioning back into society after military service.

The group welcomes members from all branches of service from all eras and war conflicts.

For more information or to help this organization, e-mail Richard Brody at rdbrody@aol.com.