HAMPTON — The students of Marston Elementary School and honored local veterans warmed the chilly Wednesday morning air with their tribute to the memory of all those who have served.

By reciting poetry, singing patriotic ballads, recognizing the significance of local landmarks named for local heroes, and breathing life back into the words of President Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, the 530 students of the school commemorated Memorial Day by acknowledging veterans of all services - both during war and during peace.

The lawns outside the school became a sea of red, white, and blue, as the children took their places with waving flags in hand.

Guest speaker Ruth E. Griffin, of the governor's executive council, and school principal David O'Connor spoke of the importance of remembrance and the significance of the holiday as a historical event. She began the celebration by asking for applause for all veterans and "what they have done to ensure freedom here and throughout the world."

Griffin spoke to the crowd on the history of Memorial Day dating back to 1868 when John Logan was appointed Commander in Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, as he proclaimed that May 30 should be a day dedicated to "honoring the dead of the Civil War with strewn spring-time flowers," and to remember the sacrifices of all those who made sure that "all men and women were free by freeing up a race of people," the executive councilor said.

Although the New York Times arts section proclaimed that day in their headline story that supremism and racism were alive and well in some parts of the US even still, those thoughts were far from Hampton, as messages of patriotism, freedom, and equality were said, sung, and read by many.

"Yes, we are free, but we have to continually work to maintain that freedom," Griffin said, as she urged to students to look at their flags and remember them as a symbol of that freedom and the "priceless possession that we own."

[Photo left, Marston School third-grader Robin Hunt holds an American flag while listening to the proceedings during a Memorial Day assembly held at the school Wednesday morning, May 30, 2001. Hunt's Girl Scout troop #2206 led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance.]

Girl Scout troop 2206 led the crowd in the pledge of allegiance to begin the celebration, followed by "America the Beautiful" and "America" played in harmony on saxophone, clarinet, and flute by the fifth grade band, and accompanied on piano by music teacher Andrew Price.

The poems "Memorial Day," "Peace," and "The Name Upon The Wall" were read, and moved all, by third graders from different classes.

Members of Mrs. Gagnon's fourth-grade class read somberly aloud the names of different streets around town named for fallen local heroes. They were called "Streets of Honor," and the students asked the crowd to remember those names and look for those signs in their travels,

The Gettysburg Address was read by members of Mrs. Dowst's and Mrs. Beaudoin's classes, and "Yankee Doodle" was sung by Mrs. Down's fourth-grade students.

"Amazing Grace" was beautifully rendered by the fifth-grade chorus. The rendition included several sweetly sung solos.

As a fitting and silent symbolic gesture, the ceremony concluded with a procession during which each student placed his or her flag in the ground at the base of the school's flagpole. Traditional to any Memorial Day celebration, the students and veterans then ended the day with an all-American cookout.

INTRODUCTIONS
David O'Connor, Principal
Lois Casta, Assistant Principal

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Girl Scouts -- Troop #2206

"AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL" AND "AMERICA"
Selected Grade 5 Band Members
Under the direction of Mr. Andrew Price

HONORABLE RUTH E. GRIFFIN
Guest Speaker
Governor's Execcutive Counsel

"MEMORIAL DAY" A POEM
Grade 3 Students

STREETS OF HONOR
Mrs. Gagnon's Fourth Grade Class

THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS
Students from Mrs. Dowst and Mrs. Beaudoins' Class

"YANKEE DOODLE"
Mrs. Down's Fourth Grade Class
Under the direction of Mr. August Carlson

"PEACE" AND "THE NAME UPON THE WALL" -- POEMS
Grade 3 Students

"AMAZING GRACE"
Grade 5 Chorus
Under the direction of Mrs. Pat Liddy

CEREMONIAL PLACING OF FLAGS AND
"WE, THE CHILDREN OF AMERICA"
Grade 5 Chorus
Under the direction of Mrs. Pat Liddy
Marston Students And Staff

Special Thanks

To The Veterans of Hampton

Mr. Keith Lessard and his staff

Mrs. Nancy Stiles

The Staff of the Hampton Schools Food Services
Felicia, Theodora, Jack, Judy, and Beth, Gail and Jackie

Al Pierce

Mrs. Kathie Bowen

Mrs. Sharon Tovey and Mrs. Pat Simons

Ms. Mary Jo Wright, Pianist

Staff and Students of the Marston School

---

Students and staff placed small flags around the base of the flagpole.
[Photo courtesy Marston School Website.] Return to Table of Contents