A group of Placerita Junior High students said they learned how one person can make a huge difference after meeting two Medal of Honor recipients at the Ronald Regan Library in February.
The group of students who were selected to go were a part of either Placerita’s associated student body or its safe school ambassadors. Eighth graders Beau Evans, Isaiah Hernandez, Drew Almond, Isabella Torres and seventh grader Elizabeth Avidon agreed that the encounter was inspirational to the students who were able to attend.
“I personally think it was really inspirational to see them because they were selfless, and they made a difference just by helping out and doing their part in the Army. So I thought that was really cool,” said Avidon. “I think it really showed off the message that one person can make a difference.”
The students were able to listen and ask questions to Spc. 5 Dwight Birdwell and Staff Sgt. Clinton Romesha, both U.S. Army veterans.
Torres said the part of Birdwell’s story that stuck with her the most was when he recounted his time during the Vietnam War. She said he was telling them about how he got injured while fighting and when a medical team came to airlift him out of the area, he told them that he didn’t want to go and that he wanted to keep fighting.
Evans said Romesha went through a similar situation and that is what stuck out to him.
“He (Romesha) was in the Afghanistan war,” said Evans. “A grenade had blown up right by his body and he got shrapnel everywhere. He was supposed to get transported away to safety and what he did, he said, ‘No, I stay with my men until it’s over.’ And I just thought that’s wild.”
Feeling inspired from the stories of selflessness, the students said they wanted to bring that spirit to their campus.
Almond said that he recognized that the veterans talked about doing whatever it took. For him he felt that as a member of ASB he could help implement different activities on campus to make Placerita the best it can be.
For Hernandez, hearing how Birdwell and Romesha didn’t follow the rules because they knew they needed to do it a different way to help out was moving.
Assistant Principal Brandi Davis said it was with the help of Courtney Straka, supervisor of professional development and student achievement data for the William S. Hart Union High School District, that the school was given the opportunity to take students to meet the Medal of Honor recipients.
Davis added the students said they were able to learn several virtues from the recipients’ speeches and could see how the students were using it to make Placerita a great campus.
