VIENNA (WSIL) -- Community leaders shared the importance of honoring our veterans this morning, with student leadership in Vienna.
Vienna High School welcomed US Navy Veteran Ed Smith, to speak about the importance of honoring our veterans.
"There are Honor Guard people all over the United States, and there are Honor Flights in some parts of the United States. We're extremely fortunate to have an Honor Flight here and be able to take the veterans that we do," says Smith.
Vienna Superintendent Joshua Stafford says he wants to encourage his students to get involved.
"We've seen thousands, literally thousands and thousands of people be involved in supporting that work with the southern Illinois Honor Flight at the Marion Veteran's airport, and certainly want that next generation of our students and our community here in southern Illinois to realize the importance of that, not just realize the importance of that, but invest in the opportunity of helping serve those who have served all of us," says Stafford.
Smith adds, "That's what you want to instill in all the kids, and the adults. Respect the veterans for what they have done in the past, and the veterans that are doing it now, and the ones that are coming in the future."
Smith's audience was filled with student council members from both Vienna and Meridian High Schools, something Stafford says will hopefully carry his message further.
"Certainly anytime that you can pull together the student leadership from any respective community, they can carry that message back to their community."
Both Smith and Stafford say they want to see more young people get involved with organizations like Honor Flight and Honor Guard, so they can carry on traditions for generations to come.
