November 11th, Veterans Day. A day of solemnity and remembrance in East Grand Rapids, yet also a day of celebration and rejoicing. A day when our community comes together to honor all the brave men and women who have left behind their friends and families, to serve our great nation. 

The Veterans Day assembly held here is truly a unique way that our community pays homage to those who have served in the armed forces. Many schools do not hold a Veterans Day assembly, but the high school has honored veterans and families for the last 50 years.

One thing that is unique about the way East Grand Rapids honors veterans is that this assembly gives seniors at the high school a special opportunity to participate and help lead the assembly. The proceedings for this assembly begin with seniors escorting each class down to the gym, and lining up along the sides of the hallway, some bearing flags. 

Flags are presented in front of the school, and memorial candles are lit. After the candles are lit, a speech from the senior class president is given, reminding us of why we are congregating on this day. Following the speech, every East Grand Rapids fallen veteran’s name is called out, and upon completion, the candles are blown out, and the snare drum plays its final sound. This is followed by Taps, and the illumination of the flag, all setting the stage for the keynote speaker. 

This year’s keynote speaker is Lieutenant Colonel Andy Graham. Graham is an East Grand Rapids alumni, from the class of ‘93, and is currently stationed in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, serving as the leader of the ​​160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR). Graham brings substantial experience in the armed forces to our assembly. Following his graduation from West Point, Graham went on to serve 11 deployments In Iraq, and an additional two deployments in Afghanistan.

Graham is one of only a few East Grand Rapids Alumni service members, and Graham has attributed some of his military successes to his experiences growing up in East Grand Rapids. 

“Graduating from East Grand Rapids definitely prepared me for my career in the military. If you go to East Grand Rapids schools, you expect to achieve, you expect to succeed, and it never occurred to me that I wouldn’t graduate from West Point. East Grand Rapids teaches you how to set a goal and achieve it,”  Graham said. 

Graham understands the importance of holding a Veterans Day Assembly and states that attending Veterans Day as a student at East was an influence on his eventual military career.

 “The Veterans Day Assembly is very important because there is not a lot of military presence in Michigan, there’s no active duty bases in Michigan, and then specifically in East Grand Rapids, there’s no exposure to the military on a daily basis. The veterans assembly in some cases, might be a student’s total exposure to the concept of service and being a veteran,” Graham said. 

Lastly, Graham emphasizes the importance of living life in service of others and making meaningful contributions to society. 

“One thing that I would offer as advice to students is that a life of service in whatever form it may be is truly meaningful,” Graham said. “I think as people look back on their lives, they’re most proud of the times that they’ve served other people, and the military is a great way to do that. There are a million other ways to serve others, but I think the more that we focus on serving our fellow human beings, our society will become better. It’s better for the world.”