BY KARISSA MILLER
Woodland Heights Elementary School students and staff paid tribute to local military veterans Thursday morning during the school’s eighth annual Veterans Day Celebration.
“We want you to know that your service has made a lasting impact. You have protected the freedoms that we enjoy every single day,” said Principal Kristie Spenner. “For that, we are grateful.”
South Iredell High School’s Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps members opened the ceremony with the Presentation of the Colors.
Veteran Isaac Volta spoke about his family background and experiences in the U.S. Army.
“Yes, I am Delilah’s dad, but my mom is also Ms. Marisol,” Volta said. “You might have noticed she has a little bit of an accent, and that’s because she was born in Cuba.”
His mother left Cuba because it is a Communist country and doesn’t have the freedom that Americans enjoy, he said. She was 22 years old at the time and was driven to make a better life for her one-year-old daughter.
“Because of your decision,” he said to his mother, “I was born in America with the freedom. I’m proud to be a first generation Cuban-American.”
Volta joined the Army when he was 19 years old and spent his 20th birthday in Iraq. A year later, he served a lengthy second deployment in Iraq.
“While I was fighting for my life and my buddies, my friends back home in Miami were going to the beach, getting a tan and living out their youth. Sometimes I wish I would be right there,” he said.
“I’m proud of my service. I’d do it again. War isn’t like Fortnight or Call to Duty. It’s scary and exhausting,” he added.
During those hard times, he clung to “The Warrior’s Creed.”
“I’ll always place the mission first. I will never accept defeat. I will never quit. I will never leave a fallen comrade. I am disciplined … I am a soldier,” he said.
Woodland Heights students stepped up as leaders during the celebration by singing songs, leading the Pledge of Allegiance and reading patriotic poems.
Sounds of the fifth-graders singing about America filled the room. Music teacher Jordan McCray led the students as they performed “Star Spangled Banner” and “America the Beautiful” for the veterans.
The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Aryanna Gandee-Wallace. Emma Walker, Jackson Self, Sweeney Carbone, and Cate Holzshu read poems and delivered patriotic messages. Students also made decorations ahead of the event.
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