Community donations bring Bloomer middle schoolers to Field of Honor

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Posted: Fri 5:37 PM, Sep 14, 2012

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Reporter: Joe Nelson Email

Updated: Sat 11:56 AM, Sep 15, 2012

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Community donations bring Bloomer middle schoolers to Field of Honor

EAU CLAIRE, Wisc. (WEAU) - Nearly 400 Bloomer Middle School students got out of the classroom Friday to learn valuable history lessons at the Field of Honor in Eau Claire.

Students and teachers explored the memorial featuring 1,500 American flags and 141 Wisconsin flags representing fallen service members from the state since Sept. 11, and the Moving Wall with more than 58,000 names of veterans killed in Vietnam.

"Every day, living in America is like a privilege, and (veterans) are the people who made it possible," Bloomer seventh-grader Sam Lanzer said.

"It's important, so people realize what is going on in other countries and how people are sacrificing their lives to protect our country," Bloomer eighth-grader Gabe Naumann said.

Many who attended have personal ties. School technology coordinator and Air National Guard Sr. Master Sgt. David Roseth said it's a great opportunity for students to visualize what service members have done.

"It's important for the kids to put that link together of people, real people with faces and families serving and that some of them did give the ultimate sacrifice," Roseth said.

"It's important for us to know it because that way, we don't forget it," Bloomer seventh-grader Madison Simmons said.

The field trip was made possible by donations from the Bloomer American Legion, V.F.W., Lions Club and Kobussen busses.

"I threw some busses in and they threw some donations in, and we put it together to get the children there because it's important," Kobussen terminal manager Russell Rae said.

"It's a great thing just to remind, especially kids about how people made great sacrifices, just so we could live great lives in America," Lanzer said.

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