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Sheffield students make hundreds of valentine cards for veterans

Times Daily - 2/12/2017

SHEFFIELD -- Hearts and American flags might be an odd combination but not when school children are creating Valentine cards for U.S. military veterans.

On Wednesday, children enrolled in Sheffield's Headstart program, Threadgill Primary School and L.E. Willson Elementary School spent part of their day trying to brighten the day of the men and women who help make the country safer.

Mary Stevens, president of Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary Post 8640, said she would be delivering the cards to Veterans Administration Hospitals in Tuscaloosa and Birmingham.

"We do this every year," Stevens said. "The veterans look forward to seeing us."

Students at Threadgill Primary School have been making the cars from construction paper, color markers and crayons for five years. This is the second year for L.E. Willson to be involved, Principal Tony Willis said.

Stevens said 250 to 300 students take part.

"We want them to know who the veterans are and what they do," Stevens said. "They ask a lot of questions and they're very interested."

The students made cards with hand-drawn American flags, hearts and soldiers, and messages.

"They served our country so we could live," said L.E. Willson fourth-grader Natalie Scruggs said as she made her card. She included the "Pledge of Allegiance" on the back of her card.

"They risked their lives for us," fourth-grader Ava Box said.

She didn't know who was going to receive the card she was making, but that it would go to "a special veteran that served our country."

Fourth-grader Cameron Keck knows veterans' work does not end when they leave the service.

"They have family to take care of when they come back," he said.

Some of them, he said, come back injured.

Stevens said one 7-year-old was so inspired that he said he was going to join the Army so he could help save his country.

Stevens said they try to get veterans who received cards to come speak to the students.

While many of the cards are hand delivered to veterans in V.A. hospitals, they are also sent to service members related to students, teachers, staff and local residents.

City Councilman Steve Nix said his father-in-law, Gerald Cook, is a veteran who received a card from the children last year.

"It teared him up," Nix said. "He wanted to come down and thank them."

Nix said Cook was very thankful that the children thought enough of veterans to send them a card.

The councilman said Stevens asked him a couple years ago if he know anyone in the school system who could help get more cards made. Nix's daughter, Hollie Booth, is a teacher at L.E. Willson.

"The kids don't need to forget our veterans," Nix said.

Booth said Stevens contacted her last year about letting the students make Valentine cards when she was teaching fourth grade. Booth is now a special education teacher.

"She is really passionate about that," Booth said of Stevens.

In the past, the schools have let the children write letters to veterans on Veterans Day, Booth said. They will ask the students and staff if they have family in the military so they can send them cards.

Booth said several veterans have come to the schools and shared stories with the children and thanked them for their kindness.

"They're at the ages where they're still excited about writing letters like that," Willis said.