Greensboro, NC - On this Veterans Day, less than ten percent of the population in the Triad are veterans, and with this small number comes a disconnect between what goes on in our every day lives, and the sacrifice of the few for the many that goes on every day overseas.
Caldwell Academy, a private school in Greensboro, held a ceremony honoring over 300 veterans to remind their students just how important it is to honor, remember, and learn from heroes who fight for our freedom.
This is the tenth year Caldwell Academy has hosted a ceremony to honor veterans, and following the ceremony veterans went to classrooms to share their stories with students.
One of these veterans, Larry Cecil, talked to students about the importance of learning from the past, "there's a famous saying that says those who fail to learn the history lessons will repeat the failures of the past."
Cecil says, "There is a lack of awareness among young people today through no fault of their own. There is certainly a disconnection because in the past, the entire population was in the military. Today, there is less of a cross section of society in the military."
Nick Phialka, an active duty member of the military in attendance at the ceremony said it was a great way to talk to students about what life in the military is like, "the opportunity to come into the school and sit down with the students that are very much away from a military environment, it gives them a little look at what this country has to offer if you choose to accept the challenge."
Phialka said it was an honor to stand alongside veterans who have fought, "It's unspeakable the amount of humility that I feel as somebody in it right now to be standing among those men who are heroes."