Students Honor Veteran's Day With Virtual Salute To Service

Students in all three divisions commemorated Veteran’s Day with a virtual salute to service. The program, produced by Director of Multimedia Productions Ken Archer, honored Benjamin parents, faculty, former parents, and alumni who have served our country. 

Head of School Mr. Dave Faus commenced the program with a tribute to his father and grandfather who were both veterans and are buried in Arlington Cemetery in Washington, D.C. Viewers were treated to a performance by the Benjamin Dazzlers dance team before Head of Upper School Fletcher Carr paid tribute to former Benjamin parent Todd Ruedisili, a Vietnam veteran and purple heart recipient, who passed away in October. 

“Todd was an amazing reflection of the second half of the 20th century,” said Carr. “ . . . He possessed two traits that I always admired: humility and curiosity. I left every conversation with him having gained some new insight into his life and into the lasting lessons that his time in the service of our country taught him. Much more importantly, I left every conversation feeling uplifted and looking forward to my next visit. I, and all of us at the upper school, will miss that next visit very much.”

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Lower school students in third grade shared letters they had written to veterans thanking them for their service. Second grade teacher Kelly Genn’s class also had the opportunity to hear from three veterans via Zoom about their time serving, including one student’s father, a student’s uncle, and Mrs. Genn’s husband.

The program, coordinated by Social Studies Department Chair Sara Misselhorn ‘90, was dedicated in remembrance of Chief Warrant Officer Jonathan Farmer ‘99 who was killed in a bombing in Syria in 2019.

Misselhorn said she looks forward to building on this all-school collaboration in the future.
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A premier PK3 - Grade 12 independent, coeducational day school with campuses in North Palm Beach and Palm Beach Gardens. Since 1960, The Benjamin School has provided a challenging college preparatory education to a diverse student body in a structured, nurturing community environment.
 
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