Some little hands from Clear Lake Elementary recently touched the hearts of American soldiers serving in Iraq and reminded them of what they’re fighting for.
Second and third-graders in teacher Melissa Douglas? class recently received a photograph showing members of the U.S. Army’s 507th Medivac Company standing in front of a Blackhawk helicopter and holding an American flag the students made and mailed to their teacher’s fiancee.
Douglas? fiancee is Warrant Officer 2 Jeffrey Leach, a Rochester native and Medivac helicopter pilot who’s been serving in Iraq since late August.
As part of their lesson on patriotism, students traced their tiny hands on red, white and blue construction paper and cut them out.
The paper hands were then glued together to form an American flag. Each of the flag’s 13 red and white stripes contained about 20 hands as did the blue square, for a total of roughly 280 small handprints.
Students also wrote personal letters to the soldiers, which were mailed with the flag.
‘I wanted to support Jeff,? Douglas said. ‘I wanted to show him what everyone is thinking and feeling over here, how grateful we are for what he’s doing.?
‘The soldiers over there are very humble,? she explained. ‘To Jeff, it’s a job like anyone else’s job. He doesn’t see it as, ‘I’m a hero . . . I’m saving people’s lives . . . Everyone looks up to me.? He doesn’t see it like that, but he is all of those things.?
In an e-mail to Douglas, Leach wrote, ‘It was a great feeling to see the flag made with children’s handprints. It brought a smile to all of our faces and we enjoyed reading the letters the students had written us.?
Douglas said her students were absolutely thrilled when they saw the photograph of the soldiers holding their flag. ‘Often times children will send things to soldiers, but it’s not that often they get to see a response,? she said. ‘People all over are sending letters and cards and presents, but to see the soldier you sent it to, to see it got to where it was supposed to go, that’s really neat.?
Douglas said her fiancee will return to the U.S. in February. The couple has planned an October 2005 wedding.