BARDSTOWN, Ky. (LEX 18) — Every veteran has a story to share. We just may not know it yet. That’s true for Laura Craig, a social studies teacher at Bethlehem High School.
“My grandfather was in the military,” she said. “I just grew up kind of hearing about that, like ‘my time in Germany, my time in Germany,’ but it’s like, he's never going to have a movie made about him or anything.”
Craig and her students in Bardstown are learning more about our nation’s veterans by taking part in the Silent Heroes program put on by National History Day.
“These men went and fought and served their country, but then they came right back home, and they didn't expect glory, parades,” Craig said. “They just went back to living their lives and being community leaders.”
This year, Craig is one of 52 teachers selected to lead her class in researching for the Silent Heroes program, Untold Stories from the US Marine Corps in World War II.
“One of our veterans is Corporal James Beaven Miles,” Craig shared. “He's from Lebanon, Kentucky. After the war he lived in Louisville. I talked to his daughter a few weeks ago, and she like talked about how he built his own house and like she lives in it today. He was really involved in his church.”
“Our other hero is Private Elmer Lee Arnold, and we're having a little bit harder time finding information about him, but I know he has like 12 kids, so I'm hoping we'll make contact.”
Right now, Craig’s class is in its research phase.
“We’ve done a couple of modules already, just researching their life before the war. Now we're researching their hometowns. Later, we'll research their veteran experience and their military service.”
"This will culminate, um, in a visit to Lebanon National Cemetery, where the students will deliver eulogies at these two Marines' grave sites,” Craig shared.
Altogether, National History Day is working with these 52 teachers and classes to tell the stories of 100 veterans who served during World War II. The students will also develop a profile that will go on the Veterans Legacy Memorial website.
