Valentines for veterans

Jan. 30--DANVILLE -- The valentine cards at Meade Park Elementary School were as varied as the imaginations of the young minds that created them.

First- and third-graders decorated the cards with heart cutouts, a paper boat on blue waves, a bright yellow sun and glitter ... lots of glitter. The cards will be delivered to the Veterans Affairs Illiana Health Care System in time for Valentine's Day.

"We have a connection to them," Meade Park Principal Mendy Spesard said of the VA campus that is adjacent to the school. "The first-graders go and visit the veterans on Halloween."

First-grader Derrick Bibbs colored a paper heart shape with markers.

"This one is called a heart that's red, white and blue," he explained.

Another first-grader, Zamari Brown, contemplated what kind of message he wanted to write inside of his card.

"I want to say 'Thank you for fighting for our country,' but I don't know how to spell 'fighting,'" he said.

Zamari colored the bottom half of a piece of white paper with a blue marker and then tore the paper so a little bit of white showed to look like waves. He then glued the water and waves onto his card.

"The Navy is my favorite because they fight from the sea," he said.

First-grader Macie Boyle drew wings on either side of a heart that she covered in glitter on the front of her card. Above the winged heart was a bright yellow sun.

"It's a heart angel," she explained.

Fellow first-grader Olivia Shepherd wrote in large letters inside her card: "Thank you for saveing our country."

Young artist Lazaria Davis added a pop-up cloud that she made from folded paper and glued it to her card. She said the pop-up feature was to make the veteran recipient "happy."

Over at Edison Elementary School, students in all grade levels also have been decorating valentine cards for the veterans. It is a project fourth-grade teacher Jim Rogers took on about nine years ago when his sister, Teresa Ard, was chief of voluntary services at the Danville VA. She has since retired, but Rogers has continued the project.

"I coordinate the valentines for vets," he said. "I usually receive a couple hundred cards from throughout the district.

"Most of the teachers at Edison participate, and I received some cards from Garfield the other day," he said. "The Junior ROTC at the high school makes cards as well."

The card-making project isn't all about cutting out heart shapes and sprinkling glitter on the cards. Rogers says he uses it as a learning opportunity to talk to the children about what a veteran is.

"I'm a veteran, and we talk about my service," he said.

After collecting all of the homemade valentines, Rogers will deliver the cards to the VA.

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