On Thursday, November 10, El Dorado High School (EDHS) hosted its tenth annual Veterans Day ceremony at its Fallen Heroes Memorial on campus. Each year, the ceremony is supported by Placentia Boy Scout Troop 723, the Binnings family, and the school’s choral and digital media arts programs.
The Fallen Heroes Memorial was constructed in 2013 as an Eagle Scout project by Andrew Binnings, a 2014 EDHS graduate. The Memorial honors the three El Dorado graduates who sacrificed their lives defending the country – U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sergeant William Harrell (92), U.S. Marine Corps Corporal Claudio “Nene” Patiño IV (06), U.S. Army Sergeant Jason Michael Weaver (07).
“Each of these Golden Hawks made the decision to serve their country and paid the ultimate price by sacrificing their lives,” Principal Joey Davis shared. “It is their service that we are here today to honor. The idea that they walked the same steps to get from one end of campus to another. They sat in the same classrooms as each of you do. It’s what makes having this memorial so meaningful and why we moved the event during the school day.”
This year’s ceremony speakers included a keynote address from Colonel James Lively of the United States Marine Corps. EDHS ASB President, Lucy Murillo, served as the emcee for the event and student, Lucy Cavalluzzi, read a poem and lead a moment of silence.
In front of the ceremony’s reflective audience, Col Lively spoke of the honor and sacrifice that veterans have made that led to this celebration of freedom. He then conducted a ceremonious Veteran Roll Call. Name after name, Veterans in attendance responded, “Sir, here, sir,” until the names of the fallen Golden Hawks were announced. To commemorate the fallen, EDHS trumpeter, Benny Carruth, played “Taps,” the distinctive melody performed at U.S. military funerals and memorials.
All students and staff were able to live stream the Veterans Day ceremony in their classrooms courtesy of El Dorado’s Digital Media Arts Academy. The full ceremony is available to watch here.
Of the ceremony, Superintendent Dr. Mike Matthews shared the following: “The story of the building of the memorial, the gathering of veterans from across the community, the honoring of three fallen former El Dorado graduates, and the attendance of dignitaries from the community, all of it in the presence of students, was extremely emotional and powerful. I know it is incredibly meaningful to our veterans, and it is also a wonderful teaching moment for our students. Kudos to everyone involved, to El Dorado High School, and to PYLUSD.”
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