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Surico asked them to imagine what it must feel like for U.S. service members in Afghanistan who must wear flak jackets in 110-degree heat. Then he talked about the hardships and merits of military service and shared his experiences.


“I didn’t try to sell the military to them,” says Surico. “I told them like it is.”


Surico spent more than 15 minutes answering students’ questions. After he left, Hassen reported the students continued to talk about his visit for nearly an hour.


“One of my students asked me to thank Colonel Surico’s family for their sacrifice, too,” says Hassen. “I knew at that moment that the visit was more meaningful for the students than I had ever thought it would be.”


Sharing their experiences
As part of their mission to promote patriotism, members in affiliates from the Lancaster (Pa.) Chapter to the Luke (Ariz.) Chapter have started programs to educate children about the military and what it means to serve your country and fight for its freedoms. In fact, the Calusa Chapter started its program after learning about the Citrus County (Fla.) Chapter’s success with the Veterans in the Classroom Program.


Dottie Connor, who organized the Calusa Chapter’s program in 2011, says she was inundated with requests from teachers who wanted a veteran to speak to their students. All told, in a one-week period, nine chapter members and three speakers from the Florida Veterans Foundation addressed 1,728 students from 85 classes in 14 different schools in Lee County, Fla.


“I enjoyed putting the Veterans in the Classroom program together,” says Connor, “and I hope we can continue to do it in the future around Veterans Day [because] I think it helps the children to see veterans as real people in part of their community.”


Increasing exposure
According to the 2010 Census, less than 1 percent of the U.S. population are members of the military and only 7 percent of the country’s population are veterans. Not surprisingly, when MOAA members visit area classrooms, many students say they don’t know anyone who is a veteran. Others must go back several generations to name someone.


In Lawrence, Kan., a university town almost 100 miles from the nearest military base, members of MOAA’s Jayhawk Chapter are working to change that by linking veterans with students through their Veterans in the Classroom program. According to chapter member Capt. Tom Arnold, USN-Ret., the program helps students develop an appreciation for veterans and allows them learn about the military lifestyle.


Capt. John Newsom, USN-Ret., gave his thoughts on the atomic bomb to students at West Middle School. 


“I think sharing our experience helps young people realize the opportunities the military affords,” says Arnold. “You get to travel, interact with people, work as a team, further your education, and develop good life skills.”


The program also gives students an opportunity to learn history from those who have lived it, such as 92-year-old Capt. John “Buck” Newsom, USN-Ret., a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and veteran of three wars. During a visit to West Middle School in Lawrence, Newsom and fellow chapter member Capt. Jim Cooper, USN-Ret., discussed the use of the atomic bomb during World War II. Many students believed using the atomic bomb was a bad decision. But Newsom told students his take on the event, that although many Japanese lives were lost, he believed using the atomic bomb saved his life, as well as the lives of countless Americans and Japanese who would have been killed if Allied forces had invaded Japan.


“The teachers present thanked us and were emphatic in telling us how valuable it is for students to hear this perspective,” says Cooper. “We also received many thank-you cards on that day.”


According to Cooper, five chapter members and one student from the Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kan., participated in the Jayhawk Chapter’s Veterans in the Classroom program in 2011. This year, he hopes to expand the program so more students can connect with local veterans.


APRIL 2012 MILITARY OFFICER 47

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