The halls of Pleasant Valley Elementary School in Novato were filled with chattering and excitement Friday morning as third-graders lined up, American flags in hand, to meet a group of local veterans.
As a line of 10 veterans in crisp uniforms walked to the assembly hall, the children quieted briefly. Then they erupted in song, performing “You’re a Grand Old Flag” to welcome the vets.
The students, ages 8 or 9, had written letters to Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7816 in Novato, asking the members questions and thanking them for their service.
The practice was started five years ago by Pleasant Valley third-grade teacher Carolyn Tagliaferri as a way to help students learn letter-writing skills. Tagliaferri’s father, uncle and father-in-law were veterans.
Last year was the first time the veterans responded, asking if they could meet the children. Veteran Rick Hanley was the one who reached out to Tagliaferri and brought a group of veterans to meet her class.
Coincidentally, Hanley and Tagliaferri realized in that first meeting that Hanley’s granddaughter had once been a student of Tagliaferri.
This year, the school expanded the assignment to all three third-grade classes, each writing letters and meeting the veterans in a large assembly.
“It’s just special to me,” Tagliaferri said of the letter-writing tradition.
Hanley said that when he received the letters, he was amazed by children’s maturity, curiosity and appreciation for their service. Other veterans echoed the sentiment.
“It was so wonderful, these kids, last year, had the most incisive, good questions asking us about military service,” said Dick Locke, who participated in last year’s meeting as well as the assembly on Friday. “I said, these aren’t third-graders, these are teenagers in third-grade suits.’”
As Tagliaferri’s students waited for the assembly to start, they were teeming with excitement and recalled the joy they found in writing the letters.
“I thought that the veterans’ letters were very fun to do,” said Soren Frank, a Cub Scout who reminds his class each morning to perform the Pledge of Allegiance.
“Writing the letters made me feel really happy,” said Anna Cole.
Once the students and veterans gathered in the assembly hall, they recited the Pledge of Allegiance. The students sat in rows in front of the veterans as they peppered them with question after question: “How long ago did you serve?” “What did you eat in the military?” “What are the badges on your hat?” “Is it itchy inside your clothes?”
The veterans took turns answering and sharing stories from their service. Vicky Aguila, a Navy veteran, was the only woman present in the group. She pointed out to the students that her hat specifically said she was a female veteran, saying she had been asked many times if her husband had been the one who served.
“My last deployment was nine months on the Iraq-Kuwait border. I trained for three months in order to be a part of that battalion,” she said. “I wanted to be there, I was yearning to be there … being a female, being of color, best adventure for me.”
In the audience, parents Heather Worley and Anthony Machado watched as their daughter Amelia and her classmates chatted to the veterans.
Machado and Worley, who each had family members in the military, said they were thrilled to know their daughter was writing a letter to a local veteran. It was an honor for them to be in the audience, they said, adding they would be excited if this experience motivated their daughter to serve in the future.
“Vicky being here, that’s an inspiration to have one woman out of all of those men doing the things that she did and sharing her story,” said Worley. “It’s incredible.”
After asking their questions, the students lined up to receive flag pins and paper poppies from the veterans. The poppies, Hanley pointed out, are a symbol of honor for veterans who had lost their lives in service.
The students were taught a marching drill and performed a final song. As the assembly ended, the children and the veterans shared conversations, hugs and thank yous.
“It’s truly an honor to come here,” Hanley said.
