The Veterans Vigil Youth Program was held on the second floor of the Sam Rayburn Student Center at 9:00 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 5.
As part of the 19th Annual Veterans Vigil ceremonies at A&M-Commerce, the Youth Program provided an opportunity for local middle school students to learn about Veterans Affairs and the Reserve Officer Training Corps.
Students from Commerce, Wolfe City and Campbell were in attendance. The program began with an introduction from Youth Program Coordinator Robyn Price. After she presented information about the branches of the military and the ROTC, the students were divided into three groups and sent to different rooms for short presentations.
The first group was sent to the flag-folding ceremony, where Robert Rex Bunch, a USAF Vietnam Era Veteran, introduced the American flag, its history and different versions.
“The flag represents a nation and its people,” Bunch said. “It stands for many things, but it is more than just a symbol.”
A demonstration of how to fold the flag was made by Honor Guard members Johnny Clay and Wayne Thomas, as well as Honor Guard Commander Royce “Ugly” Hobbs. Chaplain Bob Reece narrated the meaning of each of the 13 folds while the ceremony was taking place. Students were then given a chance to ask questions.
“The flag that we folded here today was draped on my father’s casket,” Hobbs said. “I use it today to honor him and his service. The folding of the flag is a final goodbye to that soldier whom it was presented for.”
Students were then asked to sign one of three paper flags. The flags were the Texas, U.S. and A&M-Commerce flags.
Retired U.S. Marine W. Joseph Webber spoke with students in the second room. A Commerce High School graduate and current A&M-Commerce student, Webber spoke of his 30 years of military service. He also presented a sword, recommended two books and told the graphic story of a Medal of Honor recipient.
“I know it’s gory and sounds horrible, but it’s really a wonderful thing for a human to make that kind of sacrifice,” Webber said.
He spoke very highly of the Marine Corps and the U.S., as well as the citizen-soldier concept of the reserves in the ROTC.
“I was always fascinated that war spelled backwards is raw, and raw it is,” Webber said, “but war is often necessary. There will always be wars and rumors of wars, according to the Old Testament, and I believe that to be true.”
After a short question-and-answer session, students were shown a PowerPoint presentation of personal photos taken by retired army veteran Angelo Farias. Also a current A&M-Commerce graduate student, Farias served in Iraq for 14 months after graduating high school. He described his experiences in Kuwait and Iraq, primarily in Baghdad.
“We weren’t always fighting day-to-day,” Farias said. “We were mostly responsible for keeping the peace, patrolling, and talking with local Iraqis.”
When given a chance to ask questions, a few students asked if Farias liked being in Iraq and if he had been scared.
“It was hard being in Iraq,” Farias said. “I’d rather be here in Texas. I constantly wanted to come back to my family, and I was scared at times.”
The program ended with students being given a miniature U.S. flag and crossword puzzle, as well as a “Support our troops” T-shirt. A group photo was also taken around the Veterans Vigil Flame.