TOPEKA (KSNT) – With Veterans Day on Wednesday, schools across Topeka are honoring those who have served in the military, hosting their own appreciation ceremonies.
Hundreds of Highland Park High School students from all grade levels gathered to thank and honor veterans for their service on Monday, Nov. 9. Cadet Colonel Angela McCracken told 27 News that wearing the uniform while performing for veterans is an honor.
“We hope that they take it as a sense of honor,” McCracken said. “I hope that they see us like high schoolers performing and they’re like, ‘man, they really take note of what we’re doing out here in the world today’.”
Monday’s ceremony featured the Lady Scots unarmed drill team, the armed exhibition spin team and other performances that honored those who have served.
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Gary Williams, who was a master sergeant in the Air National Guard in 2024 and now works as a sergeant for campus police at Highland Park High School, told 27 News he enjoyed seeing the hard work pay off with some students taking the extra step to do drills.
“I see how hard they work,” Williams said. “Some of them show up here at six in the morning before school to do drill and then during their class in the Junior ROTC program. They are working so hard. So, to see what they bring out every single day. It’s awesome. I love it. I love to watch them succeed.”
Highland Park honored 12 staff members who were once active in the military. They served in the United States Army, United States Navy, Kansas Air National Guard and the United States Air Force. Williams told 27 News it means a lot to the veterans to see them perform.
“It’s wonderful to see the pride that the kids have when they’re out there performing, when they’re doing what they have trained hard to do,” Williams said. “It does make me extremely proud as a veteran to see that there are kids out here who value what these other veterans and what I have done. So, it is extremely satisfying.”
Topeka West High School will hold its Veterans Day assembly at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 10, and Topeka High School will have a flag-raising ceremony at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 11.
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