Veterans Day is the day set aside to thank and honor all those who served honorably in the military – in wartime or peacetime. Following the meaning behind the national holiday, various parishes and schools throughout the Diocese of Gary have taken time this month to show their appreciation for the men and women who have sacrificed to protect the country’s freedoms.
Before Veterans Day, as part of a Kindergarten and 8th Grade Buddy Service Project, students at St. John the Baptist School in Whiting helped sweeten the day of troops by collecting candy donations for Soldiers’ Angels Treats for Troops. The school served as a location to collect excess Halloween candy for VA hospitals, Military installations, and Guard/Reserve units who have registered and been approved to receive the collected candy.
St. Thomas More School in Munster also gathered candy for troops and invited all area veterans and active-duty military to join them for a flag ceremony, patriotic songs and a service honoring those who protect the country on Nov. 11. While the program was scheduled to be held outdoors following the 8:30 a.m. Mass, snow received the day before kept the event indoors this year.
“This year, we gathered in the church for the first time rather than outdoors, creating a beautiful and reverent setting,” said Jennifer Gonzalez, executive assistant to the principal. “Father Mike Yadron joined us for the celebration, and our student musicians from the choir and band performed patriotic songs that filled the space with gratitude and pride.”
Gonzalez said St. Thomas More has proudly hosted a Veterans Day Program honoring local heroes for more than 20 years. As an Indiana Purple Star School, it is committed to honoring and supporting military-connected families and teaching students the values of service, sacrifice and gratitude.
“We believe it is essential for our students to experience this day in a meaningful, faith-filled way, to understand that freedom is not free and that courage, loyalty, and love of country are virtues worth celebrating,” she said. “Through songs, essays, prayer, drawings and personal encounters with veterans, our students witness real examples of integrity and selflessness. This program also strengthens our community’s connection to the men and women who have served and reminds our students that faith, family, and service are at the heart of who we are as a Catholic school.”
Gonzalez added that each year she is deeply moved by the response from the students and guests.
“Our students listen with genuine respect and curiosity, they stand a little taller during the flag ceremony, sing a little louder during the patriotic songs, and many are eager to shake hands or thank the veterans afterward,” she said. “You can see the pride and gratitude in their faces as they begin to understand the true meaning of service and sacrifice.”
That same day, Nov. 11, veterans and family members were invited to the Annual Veterans Program at St. Michael School. The special program was presented from students of the Schererville school’s Kindergarten to 8th Grade. Similarly, Our Lady of Grace in Highland held a Veteran’s Day Program in the church. The program included presenting a flag to the grandfather of an 8th grader who served for 20 years.
St. Mary Catholic Community School in Crown Point similarly invited veterans and all active duty service men and women to join its Veterans Day Program on Friday, Nov. 14 starting at 9 a.m. The formal program was followed by coffee and donuts.
Music Teacher Tony Rossi shared that it is the 19th Veterans Day Program for the school. He explained that when Tom Ruiz was first hired as principal, he realized after his first year that the school never held a Veterans Day Program and was sure to fix that in his next year. The program has followed the same format year after year with the school changing its main speaker each time. The father of Brad Nieman, dean of students, is a Vietnam veteran and gave the speech to the students this year.
“Our Veterans Day Program is an important annual event,” Rossi said. “It gives our students the opportunity to put forth their best efforts in thanking our veterans. By writing special letters, by creating patriotic artwork, and enthusiastically singing the songs of the armed forces we are able to have our students thank the veterans for their service and sacrifice they make for us all.”
Rossi said he is proud to be a teacher at the school and witness the students waving their flags, giving their handmade paper flowers or seeing the lone scout in their uniform shaking the hand of a veteran thanking them for their service.
Our Lady Queen of Martyrs will be celebrating veterans and their families during its 2nd Annual Veteran Appreciation Luncheon. This event takes place on Sunday, Nov. 16, from 1–3 p.m. in Vamos Hall at its South Campus, 8303 Taft Street in Merrillville. Veterans are invited to bring items from their time in the service, a table will be set up for displaying them. This luncheon is free for veterans and their families, however, RSVPs were requested.
Also within the South Lake Deanery, St. Matthias continues its monthly meal share with residents of NWI Veterans Village, a 44 unit multifamily project located in Gary. All units are low income and set aside for veterans.
The next NWI Veterans Village Meal Share takes place Sunday, Nov. 30. Volunteers are always needed to help prep and deliver the meal. For more information, contact the parish office at (219) 663-2201 or visit https://stmatthiasparish.net/
