The Return of Veterans Day at Asbury Park High School!

On Monday November 6, the Social Studies department for the Asbury Park High School hosted a Veterans Day celebration for the students.

Organizing this event were history teachers Dr. Lucky Abu, Mr. Jean Dortissant, and Mr. David Wronko.

Also, helping the Social Studies department was the debate teacher Mrs. Christine Demarsico. The veterans who came to this event were Vietnam Veterans Wilbur V. Martin and George Reed, and Veteran Doris Richardson who served in Desert Storm, Guatemala, and Iraqi Freedom.

The day began with Mr. Wronko’s students, Dawn Davis Strode, Sarayia Gadson, Angel Hernandez Ruiz, Yadira Herrera-Ortiz, Justin Osorio-Cortes, and Ashton Womble giving the veterans a presentation on their current civics project.

For instance, Dawn Davis Strode, Sarayia Gadson, and Ashton Womble gave a presentation about how to solve the homelessness problem within Asbury Park and beyond. Their presentation went into how the Pandemic of 2020 and inflation had impacted many in a negative way which increased people becoming homeless. They went into solutions such as programs that assist those in need to getting new jobs and affordable housing. In addition, Angel Hernandez Ruis, Yadira Herrera-Ortiz, and Justin Osorio-Cortes discussed how to attack the problems of gun violence. They addressed ideas that could help combat this problem such as more in-depth background checks to the possible elimination of what kind of weapons were being sold. This was also addressed by Wilbur V. Martin when he spoke to the students. Veteran Martin mentioned how weapons used in the military were being sold to civilians and stressed that must come to an end and legislation needed to be passed to ensure this.

After the presentations, all three veterans split up and rotated amongst the classes of Dr. Lucky Abu, Mr. Jean Dortissant, Mr. David Wronko, and Mrs. Christine Demarsico. Doris Richardson spoke about how she was a cook and a supply sergeant in the military. She mentioned how tough her training was, which involved busting doors open and jumping out of trucks, especially in emergency situations. Veteran Richardson also spoke about working for homeland security as well as serving in Desert Storm, Guatemala, and Iraqi Freedom.

Vietnam Veterans, Wilbur V. Martin and George Reed spoke about their military experiences as well as living in the time of the segregated south. Wilbur V. Martin told the students about being a paratrooper with 265 jumps while George Reed was a medic who helped many of his comrades. Both mentioned witnessing the ugly nature of the Jim Crow laws as well as living in the time when James Meredith bravely attended a racially segregated University of Mississippi and overcame all odds to earn his degree in political science.

All the students asked numerous questions about the veterans’ military experiences, life after the military, and their personal hobbies. The event was well received from students and staff and marks a great day at Asbury Park High School.