Sisters ceremonies mark Veterans Day

Veterans Lynn Johnston, Betsy Leighty-Johnson and Jim Newman salute the flag as students sing. photo by Jim Cornelius A large crowd filled the auditorium at Sisters High School in honor of veterans of the United States armed services on Thursday, November 11.

The evening started with the high school choir and band paying tribute to those who had served and honoring those serving now, especially those in Iraq.

The program has become a tradition in Sisters. This was the fifth year for this observance, created by the Sisters High School leadership program. Each year they have conducted the program on Veterans Day evening, followed the next day by a mid-day program for the student body. Both programs are open to the public.

In 1938 Congress recognized November 11 as the anniversary of the Armistice ending World War I and "to honor the cause of world peace" named it Armistice Day.

In 1954, at the urging of veterans service organizations, Congress replaced the word "Armistice" with "Veterans." In 1968, the holiday was set as one of four national holidays to occur on Mondays. But many states continued to observe the holiday on November 11.

In 1975, President Gerald Ford returned the annual observance to November 11, where it remains today as "Veterans Day."

A highlight of the Sisters program each year has been the band's playing of a medley of the theme songs for each branch of the service. Veterans in the audience are asked to stand during the playing of their service song. Each group of honorees drew strong applause from an appreciative audience.

Band leader Jody Henderson and choir director Tara MacSween had prepared their "troops" well for this event, beginning in September, shortly after school started. Both music groups were joined by community veterans for their performances.

An eight-minute video entitled "The Home Front" featured the memories of World War II by several local women, and honored women who served during wartime, in and out of the armed forces.

Joel Premselaar speaks at a

Veterans Day ceremony. photo by Jim Mitchell

Featured speaker for the evening was U.S. Navy and World War II veteran Joel Premselaar.

Premselaar started by joking about an old friend in the audience: "I can't tell any tall stories because I have a shipmate right down here who knows better."

Regardless, he did have stories to tell, along with some philosophy.

"Good judgment comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgment. The corollary to this is that you start with a bag full of luck and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill up that bag full of experience before you run out of luck."

He went on to tell about comrades whose luck ran out first and who were being honored by this program.

Finishing the program for the evening, Crook County High School's Navy JROTC drill team's took the stage, offering a performance that was precise and spectacular. With lights dimmed and bright green glow sticks attached to the tips of their rifles, the team showed the precision that has won them regional and national honors.

The in-school program the next day varied slightly. A prior commitment took the ROTC drill team elsewhere and US Navy veteran Jack Lepper was the featured speaker.

Lepper related his experiences aboard a US Naval supply ship during World War II. His service took him across the Pacific Ocean to the Philippine Islands. Along the way they supplied land troops that were fighting to take possession of islands across the Pacific.

Lepper was in Manila when the atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ending the war. Shortly after, he received word that his father had suffered a stroke. He was flown home and subsequently discharged from the service.

Another feature of the daytime program was a lineup of about 25 students who stepped forward individually to recite the rank, name, place of residence, and age of a Central Oregon veteran who had died in Iraq. The emotional moment was followed with the playing of Taps.

Students at Sisters Elementary School and Sisters Middle School also marked the day of remembrance with flag-raising ceremonies on Wednesday, November 10. At the elementary school, teacher Craig Benton unfurled a flag that had been presented to his family in honor of his father, veteran Ed Benton. Benton ran the flag to the top of the flag pole as students sang "God Bless America," bringing tears to the eyes of several attending veterans.