Remembrance service focuses on responders
Marion Elementary School students used applause, cheers, and a deafening "Thank You!" to honor various emergency responders Sept. 11 during a remembrance service.
Responders present to accept certificates were Rob Craft, Kansas Highway Patrol; Dean Keyes, Marion Police Department; Gene Winkler and Kim Ross, Marion County Emergency Medical Services; and Thad Meierhoff and Christian Pedersen, Marion Fire Department.
Certificates also were prepared for dispatchers and the sheriff's department.
Some classes presented responders with packets of letters they wrote.
Kansas Attorney General Carla Stovall was the guest speaker.
She spoke immediately after the students sang Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA."
It wasn't easy. Almost all the adults choked up when they heard the young voices loudly and confidently sing the patriotic hymn. Stovall's voice broke when she started speaking to the students.
"That's something I promise you I will remember all my life," she said.
Stovall asked students to list things emergency responders do. The students were able to describe those duties, and in all cases, they dealt with helping others and making the world a safer place.
"You know what they're doing when you're home eating turkey and opening Christmas presents? They're working for you," she said.
Principal Stan Ploutz noted that students quickly quieted when the emergency responders came into the gym.
"That tells me you know how important today is," he said. "We're here to celebrate that we're a proud country, and a proud community, and we're all a part of that."
The ceremony included the group singing "The Star-Spangled Banner" and "America."
A Litany of Remembrance, honoring victims, rescuers, and volunteers, was recited by Brittany Yates and Alan Overton.
Marion High School Singers performed "Seeds Grow to Plants" from "Canticles of America," by John Rutter.
After the students roared out their thank-you, Stovall suggested they make a point of thanking responders on other days, too.
"And you might tell your mom and dad that they ought to do that too," she said.
