Students honor local veterans

PINE PLAINS — With Memorial Day just around the corner, Pine Plains teachers Ryan Orton and Neil Murray, and their students at Stissing Mountain Junior/Senior High School, paid tribute to the lives and legacies of area veterans at the second annual Veterans Recognition Evening on Wednesday, May 22.

“We feel it’s important to the community,” Orton said. “We feel it’s important for the kids to recognize the veterans that have given so much and we feel it’s a good community service for the kids and the school.”

The Stissing Mountain students enrolled in Orton’s eighth grade U.S. History class and Murray’s Military History class mirrored the history by wearing the proper uniforms for soldiers representing various battles. Murray shed a light on the wars reflected in the uniforms, including the American Revolution, the American Civil War, the Spanish American War, World War I and II and the Korean War. As for his own uniform, he explained that he was wearing the attire of a soldier from the Fifth New York Independent Battery of Light Artillery and talked about some of the soldiers in the regiment who were killed during the Civil War, in conjunction with Memorial Day.

Murray shared how his students gained a greater understanding of the soldiers from the past and created an honor guard timeline for the history behind the soldiers. Building upon his Living History program, he talked about how the students were given the experience of wearing the uniforms outside of the classroom.

“It was one of my favorite classes this year,” said Stissing Mountain senior Alice Wilser. “It’s one heck of an experience. It definitely keeps us busy with all the projects.”

“I’d say the class is better than I ever expected,” said fellow Stissing Mountain senior Trevor Slater. “I’ve heard of it, but living it… I think immersion is the biggest part of it.”

With assistance from his granddaughter Jenna House, Vietnam veteran Bob Clinch presented Orton and Murray with books on the Civil War that he picked up during his trip to Gettysburg, which the educators accepted with appreciation.

As executive director of the Dutchess County Historical Society, Bill Jeffway praised the endeavors that the Pine Plains Central School District for preserving the stories and sacrifices of countless veterans who have fought for the good of their country.

“A call for men and women to sacrifice has been going on for a long time,” Jeffway said, “…so we will do well to remember their stories. I think it’s fantastic what you’re doing here.”

“We do appreciate everything that’s done here in Pine Plains,” added Deputy Historian Vicky LoBrutto from the Milan Historical Society.

Orton took a moment to announce that a special certificate had been created in honor and memory of Shannon Kent, a U.S. Navy cryptologist from Pine Plains who was killed in an Isis suicide bomb attack in Syria earlier this year.

One by one, Orton invited his and Murray’s students to the podium to read aloud from the list of veterans who dedicated their lives to their country, many of whom were related to the students. In solemn tones, the students read the names, pausing occasionally to present a certificate of recognition to an attending veteran. 

Orton then announced that Pine Plains Superintendent of Schools Martin Handler was a veteran of the Vietnam War. He invited students to stick around after the program so they could stop by the Stissing Mountain library and present Handler with a certificate during the Pine Plains Board of Education (BOE) meeting. Before the evening came to an end, Orton paused to thank everyone who made the Veterans Recognition Evening possible, including Handler, Stissing Mountain Junior/Senior High School Principal Tara Grieb and the Pine Plains BOE for its continuous support for the program and its teachers.

Turning to the students in his eighth grade U.S. History class, Orton said, “I chose these eight individuals because they have shown excellent leadership, good character and the ability to think and act without being told. They are model students in my classes: they are the top of the top, they have the best attitude and they can carry off a conversation with an adult.

“Most importantly, I would like to thank the veterans here tonight and those who could not be with us,” Orton said. “Your selflessness and devotion are greatly appreciated.”