On Saturday November 5, students of both A.G. Berner Middle School and Massapequa High School worked together to continue the community’s tradition of supporting local veterans as dozens of star-spangled flags were planted outside of both schools to commemorate all of the heroes of the United States.

This tradition has continued for at least four years due to the efforts of the high school’s Key Club and the Berner’s Builder’s Club and members were once again excited to partake in an event that all students and staff could appreciate. These many flags, purchased by different family members, lined up both schools throughout the month of November, leaving a broad mixture of patriotic colors to attract the attention of all people passing by.

Consumed by a diverse range of problems plaguing the nation in past weeks and months, many people have forgotten the men and women that have dedicated their lives to working behind the scenes in dangerous conditions to keep the community and the country safe. The multitude of flags serving to honor these devoted individuals serves as a much-needed reminder for the people that have forgotten the challenging work these veterans have directly served for every individual, with each flag representing a piece of the past that built the world in which people live in today.

The Key Club, a group of students dedicated to helping the community by volunteering and organizing different events for citizens of the county, has made sure that the field of honor serves as a special place in the heart of all families across Massapequa.

“I love seeing the flags set up because I think it’s an ideal way to honor veterans and their sacrifices,” Key Club President Alexandra Doulos said.

Representing the 21.8 million veterans of the United States, the force of flags shimmering outside of Berner middle school welcomed veterans that came to share personal experiences on November 14, “Take a veteran to school day”. Similarly, the flags welcomed students and local news coverage onto the grounds of Massapequa High School to help celebrate the achievements of local veterans, impressing a broad range of people with the support that Massapequa demonstrates annually for military heroes.

“Setting up the flags outside of the school truly means something to a lot of people, and being able to help with this process has been a great opportunity,” Builder’s Club member Alexa Raymond said. “Even with take a veteran to school day, it was nice to see how the veterans felt comfortable in our community and were overwhelmed with support.”

Take a veteran to school day, an event where veterans came into the middle school to share and display their past experiences with students and teachers, has been a continued success in recent years and has been evolving ever since. Accommodating this growth is the field of honor, which has become more expansive over the years and acts as the forefront of representing all patriotic events in the Massapequa schools.

Both the club in the high school and in the middle school have once again made Veterans Day a success for the community as the flags remaining outside of the schools almost a month later shows the strong thought and care that continues to go towards all veterans of the community at all times.

“I hope this tradition continues because I know that it holds a special meaning for many people in the community” Alexandra Doulos said.

With the dedication of both clubs in the world of community service and organizational events, there are hopes that the tradition will continue down a strong path over the following years to come.