Youngsters at Lincolnwood’s Rutledge Hall School sang “America the Beautiful” and read poems of thanks for a small group of veterans who gathered there Friday morning as guests of the school’s annual Veterans Day assembly.
Staff Sgt. Al Mampre, 94, was one of about 10 veterans who attended the ceremony at Rutledge Hall, but was the only World War II veteran.
“Many young people don’t know our history,” he told the group of third, fourth and fifth graders who decked themselves out in red, white and blue to show their patriotism. “A lot of the (vets) I used to see (on Veterans Day) I don’t see anymore.”
While many schools across the U.S. take Veterans Day off, Lincolnwood School District 74 stopped doing about a decade ago. Rutledge Hall has welcomed veterans on the holiday for many years since former Principal Jean Weiss first started the tradition. Lincoln Hall Middle School hosted a similar ceremony during the same time Friday morning, where Lincolnwood Mayor Jerry Turry recognized another group of veterans who gathered at the school.
Groups of students at Rutledge Hall lined up for their turn at the microphone to read patriotic poems they wrote for the vets, and the entire school sang together.
A medic stationed in the Netherlands during the German invasion, Mampre said seeing the sea of support from the kids was joyful. He shared brief stories with them about the time spent abroad during the war, and about a fondness he developed for the Dutch people while stationed in Holland.
The Oak Park native was a non-commissioned officer with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, in the 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army. Since retiring from a career as a psychologist in 1978, he’s been touring schools all over the U.S. and abroad to share his experiences with younger generations.
He offered the students his thoughts about modern technology.
“People are losing skills for communicating with each other,” he said. “Even when you’re surrounded by other people, you’re really in isolation if you’re on the phone.”
The key to longevity, he said, is having a sense of humor and spending time with “a lot of good people.”
Natalie Hayes is a freelancer.