Warsaw Sixth-Graders Hope To Help WWII Navy Vet Get Posthumous Medal
May 1, 2017 at 6:45 p.m.
By Dan [email protected]
A team of Warsaw sixth-graders have not only incorporated George’s story into their National History Day (NHD) project, “Taking a Stand at Pearl Harbor,” but they’re also working to help George receive a posthumous Navy Cross or Medal of Honor.
The team of Ryun Hoffert, Eisenhower Elementary; and Geoffrey Hochstetler, Keller Bailey and Jason Benyousky, all three of Washington STEM Academy, are taking their theatrical performance to state competition in Indianapolis Saturday after winning at district contest at St. Mary’s College, Notre Dame, on Feb. 25. If they place in the top two in their division at state, they will advance to the national contest June 11-15 in Maryland.
The 2017 theme for NHD is “Making a Stand in History,” according to advisor Dick Rooker. Students can pick any topic to fit that theme, and they participate in the annual event from around the world. Students present their work in one of five ways: as a paper, an exhibit, a performance, a documentary or a website.
“It allows students to go deeper into their study,” Rooker said.
Ryun Hoffert traveled with his dad, Warsaw Schools Superintendent Dr. David Hoffert, to Pearl Harbor for the 75th anniversary in 2016. The team had chosen to apply the NHD theme to Pearl Harbor for their project.
Each of the four students wrote about two scenes for their performance, which has to be under 10 minutes long. In rehearsing their project Sunday, the boys were finished in 9 minutes, 43 seconds.
The performance begins with Ryun as Ray Emory, who worked to identify the unknown soldiers who died when Pearl Harbor was bombed. The Hofferts got to known Emory, a World War II?veteran himself, when they visited Hawaii Dec. 5-11.
It then flashes back to Japan in the early 1930s when Japan conquered Manchuria, and shows how that aggression continued and grew until Japan attacked the U.S. at Pearl Harbor in 1941.
The boys then show how George, who was aboard the USS Vestal, helped save men on the USS Arizona by throwing them a line as the ship sank. He was told not to as the USS Vestal wanted to get away from the sinking ships and explosions.
The performance also shows some of the Japanese perspective. Hochstetler read a book, “Attack on Pearl Harbor,” where they were able to get information and quotes from for their performance.
Their performance flash forwards to 1999 as it tells about Emory’s efforts to identify the soldiers in the graves marked “unknown” in the Punchbowl (the national cemetery in the Pacific) in Hawaii.
In putting the performance together, Benyousky said, “Before we had the skit, we brainstormed what we could do and what would help us get our point across. We narrowed it down to a certain amount, and added some later. We each did two or three scenes, though we had to cut a few.”
Benyousky said they learned about George during their research in a book titled “All the Gallant Men,” written by Donald Stratton and Ken Gire. Stratton was one of the men saved by George.
There are only five remaining survivors from the USS Arizona, Rooker said. Stratton and Lauren Bruner, the last two men alive who were saved by George – and who are alive because of George – are working to get George a posthumous honor as their last service to their country as they’re in their 90s. In July, the two veterans will visit Washington, D.C. for the first time. The trip has two purposes: to pay tribute and respect to those honored at Arlington National Cemetery, the WWII, Korea and Vietnam memorials and to secure the recognition and decoration for George.
More information on Stratton’s and Bruner’s efforts and a crowdfunding page for their trip has been set up at arizonafinalsalute.com. They are trying to raise $10,000 for the trip.
David Hoffert said it was neat how the boys were researching the information on George, Bruner and Stratton and now are working with Stratton and his son Randy..
“Randy and his father are excited the boys are so involved in this,” he said.
Rooker said the hold-up on George’s award is because “he disobeyed orders to save them. The Navy is not prone to recognize someone who disobeyed orders.” It, however, wouldn’t be the first time a soldier was awarded for heroism after disobeying orders.
The sixth-graders have been working on getting George the honor by contacting U.S. Senators Todd Young and Joe Donnelly and Donald and Randy Stratton, Ryun Hoffert explained. Young is considering co-sponsoring the bill to get George the honor.
“Todd Young’s office has been great and is excited about the (boys’) activity. He said he’d love to meet with the boys,” David Hoffert said.
David Hoffert said Donald and Randy Stratton, Bruner and the family of George is working with Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton and Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake on the matter, too.
A team of Warsaw sixth-graders have not only incorporated George’s story into their National History Day (NHD) project, “Taking a Stand at Pearl Harbor,” but they’re also working to help George receive a posthumous Navy Cross or Medal of Honor.
The team of Ryun Hoffert, Eisenhower Elementary; and Geoffrey Hochstetler, Keller Bailey and Jason Benyousky, all three of Washington STEM Academy, are taking their theatrical performance to state competition in Indianapolis Saturday after winning at district contest at St. Mary’s College, Notre Dame, on Feb. 25. If they place in the top two in their division at state, they will advance to the national contest June 11-15 in Maryland.
The 2017 theme for NHD is “Making a Stand in History,” according to advisor Dick Rooker. Students can pick any topic to fit that theme, and they participate in the annual event from around the world. Students present their work in one of five ways: as a paper, an exhibit, a performance, a documentary or a website.
“It allows students to go deeper into their study,” Rooker said.
Ryun Hoffert traveled with his dad, Warsaw Schools Superintendent Dr. David Hoffert, to Pearl Harbor for the 75th anniversary in 2016. The team had chosen to apply the NHD theme to Pearl Harbor for their project.
Each of the four students wrote about two scenes for their performance, which has to be under 10 minutes long. In rehearsing their project Sunday, the boys were finished in 9 minutes, 43 seconds.
The performance begins with Ryun as Ray Emory, who worked to identify the unknown soldiers who died when Pearl Harbor was bombed. The Hofferts got to known Emory, a World War II?veteran himself, when they visited Hawaii Dec. 5-11.
It then flashes back to Japan in the early 1930s when Japan conquered Manchuria, and shows how that aggression continued and grew until Japan attacked the U.S. at Pearl Harbor in 1941.
The boys then show how George, who was aboard the USS Vestal, helped save men on the USS Arizona by throwing them a line as the ship sank. He was told not to as the USS Vestal wanted to get away from the sinking ships and explosions.
The performance also shows some of the Japanese perspective. Hochstetler read a book, “Attack on Pearl Harbor,” where they were able to get information and quotes from for their performance.
Their performance flash forwards to 1999 as it tells about Emory’s efforts to identify the soldiers in the graves marked “unknown” in the Punchbowl (the national cemetery in the Pacific) in Hawaii.
In putting the performance together, Benyousky said, “Before we had the skit, we brainstormed what we could do and what would help us get our point across. We narrowed it down to a certain amount, and added some later. We each did two or three scenes, though we had to cut a few.”
Benyousky said they learned about George during their research in a book titled “All the Gallant Men,” written by Donald Stratton and Ken Gire. Stratton was one of the men saved by George.
There are only five remaining survivors from the USS Arizona, Rooker said. Stratton and Lauren Bruner, the last two men alive who were saved by George – and who are alive because of George – are working to get George a posthumous honor as their last service to their country as they’re in their 90s. In July, the two veterans will visit Washington, D.C. for the first time. The trip has two purposes: to pay tribute and respect to those honored at Arlington National Cemetery, the WWII, Korea and Vietnam memorials and to secure the recognition and decoration for George.
More information on Stratton’s and Bruner’s efforts and a crowdfunding page for their trip has been set up at arizonafinalsalute.com. They are trying to raise $10,000 for the trip.
David Hoffert said it was neat how the boys were researching the information on George, Bruner and Stratton and now are working with Stratton and his son Randy..
“Randy and his father are excited the boys are so involved in this,” he said.
Rooker said the hold-up on George’s award is because “he disobeyed orders to save them. The Navy is not prone to recognize someone who disobeyed orders.” It, however, wouldn’t be the first time a soldier was awarded for heroism after disobeying orders.
The sixth-graders have been working on getting George the honor by contacting U.S. Senators Todd Young and Joe Donnelly and Donald and Randy Stratton, Ryun Hoffert explained. Young is considering co-sponsoring the bill to get George the honor.
“Todd Young’s office has been great and is excited about the (boys’) activity. He said he’d love to meet with the boys,” David Hoffert said.
David Hoffert said Donald and Randy Stratton, Bruner and the family of George is working with Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton and Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake on the matter, too.
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