SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WNDU) - Freedom isn’t free, but on Friday, a Michigan school was serving Veterans free lunch.
Students from Stewart Elementary School in Stevensville were asked to invite friends and family, who are former or active military, to come to eat lunch with them. Over 50 Veterans joined Stewart Elementary students for lunch today. Among them were two 98-year-old World War II Veterans. “At my age, that’s history! You know, I don’t even think about it, said WWII Veteran Bill Wall (Navy) when asked about his service. “It’s just; it was a time in life. I enjoyed it. A good experience. It was just something that just happened. I guess I enjoyed it.” His great-grandson said, “It just feels really cool to be able to say I have a 98-year-old grandpa who served in World War II.” This is the second time the school has held its Veterans Day Luncheon and the first since the COVID-19 pandemic. The school started the event because they wanted a clever way to engage the community while teaching students the value of Veterans Day. “It really great to see all the veterans in and see excited the kids were to see their veterans,” said Stewart Elementary School Veterans Day Lunch Chair Jenn Wall. “It was really awesome to not only have guests back in the school but the veterans, to honor them.” Also among the veterans was US Army Colonel Donald Alsbro, who served two tours in Vietnam. He is also the co-founder of Lest We Forget, an organization that educates people about our local military veterans. “We do this so service men and women are not forgotten,” said Col. Donald Alsbro. “We hold reenactments and create videos to reach young kids about the military.” In attendance, there were veterans from WWII up to active duty, which is 80+ years of consecutive service. The total number of service years between the attending Veterans would stretch many lifetimes, all the more reason to thank a veteran for their service and sacrifice for our great country, or invite them to lunch. Home Sweet Home sponsored the event. The in-home-care provider works closely with The VA to help care for hundreds of veterans every month. Biggby Coffee provided beverages for the event, and Drive-By Designs made the signs. His great-grandson said, “It just feels really cool to be able to say I have a 98-year-old grandpa who served in World War II.” This is the second time the school has held its Veterans Day Luncheon and the first since the COVID-19 pandemic. The school started the event because they wanted a clever way to engage the community while teaching students the value of Veterans Day. “It really great to see all the veterans in and see excited the kids were to see their veterans,” said Stewart Elementary School Veterans Day Lunch Chair Jenn Wall. “It was really awesome to not only have guests back in the school but the veterans, to honor them.” His great-grandson said, “It just feels really cool to be able to say I have a 98-year-old grandpa who served in World War II.” This is the second time the school has held its Veterans Day Luncheon and the first since the COVID-19 pandemic. The school started the event because they wanted a clever way to engage the community while teaching students the value of Veterans Day. “It really great to see all the veterans in and see excited the kids were to see their veterans,” said Stewart Elementary School Veterans Day Lunch Chair Jenn Wall. “It was really awesome to not only have guests back in the school but the veterans, to honor them.”
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