LIHU‘E — Veterans of any war are asked to contact Lt. Col. Robert Levoit, director of the Kapa‘a High School Jr. ROTC program. Levoit and the cadets of the Kapa‘a High School Jr. ROTC program are embarking on a project
LIHU‘E — Veterans of any war are asked to contact Lt. Col. Robert Levoit, director of the Kapa‘a High School Jr. ROTC program.
Levoit and the cadets of the Kapa‘a High School Jr. ROTC program are embarking on a project to collect tales from veterans before they become lost.
Veterans will gather on Nov. 9 from 8:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. at the Kapa‘a High School gym where cadets will have stations established so veterans can work with teams at 20-minute intervals to relay their wartime experiences.
“In keeping with the spirit of Veterans Day and honoring our Kaua‘i veterans, the Kapa‘a Jr. ROTC program will launch its inaugural ‘Interview a Veteran’ day,” Levoit said while asking the Kaua‘i Veterans Council for its support during the KVC meeting, Wednesday afternoon. “The purpose of the program is to preserve the personal experiences of our local veterans while educating our youth so they better understand the realities of what service to our great nation entails.”
Levoit said the Library of Congress has an official Veterans History Project format, but because it is the first time the students are attempting the program, that format will not be used, but said it could be put in practice for future interviews so Kaua‘i’s veterans’ experiences could become part of the Library of Congress.
He said the “Interview A Veteran” program offers a win-win situation as cadets and students will receive a positive educational experience about the true meaning of Veterans Day along with a better appreciation of the sacrifices made by Kaua‘i’s veterans.
For the veterans, he envisions them having an enjoyable experience of sharing their stories with Kaua‘i’s youth in order to keep Kaua‘i’s local military history alive.
“We envision veterans volunteering to collect their wartime memorabilia and participating in the program by sharing their military experience with the Jr. ROTC cadets and other students of Kapa‘a High School,” Levoit said. “Veterans will be provided areas to display their memorabilia and Daniel Hamada, the school’s principal, has agreed to provide lunch for the participating veterans.”
Veterans interested in participating should contact Levoit with their name, rank, branch of service and phone number before Nov. 4 at roberto_levoit@notes.k12.hi.us, or call 821-4401, ext 208 and leave a callback number.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@ thegardenisland.com.
