Rob Gibson Staff and students at Rutland Senior Secondary remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. The school’s gym and cafeteria were transformed Thursday into an interactive Memorial Day ceremony designed to connect students with those from Rutland who have served their country. “We really wanted our students to be immersed in the Memorial Day experience, and we wanted to bring it closer to home. The first two World Wars were a long time ago, and incorporating our own voices of students, who have been through traumatic experiences when it comes to war, just brings it a little closer to home,” says Sherrie Farquhar, one of the organizers behind the experience. All of the people honored are connected to Rutland either through family, students or staff. “There are hundreds of students involved in our experience. And I think that’s why our student body as a whole feels so invested. Because a lot of our students aren’t passively watching,” said Joanne Ward, English teacher and theater in RSS. “They’re active participants. And it helps them reflect on the day and the sacrifices people have made.” Students entered the high school in large groups to the sounds of music students. From there they got drumming from the indigenous RSS learning community before hearing firsthand from an RSS student who had to flee Afghanistan when the Taliban invaded. “It was emotional. I was emotionally affected. We had some tears. A lot of students talked about how grateful they were that they didn’t have, they didn’t really realize until today, how much some of our students in our school have lived through this have left war zones .And that’s really powerful,” says Ward. For those unable to attend the ceremony at RSS on Thursday, there will also be a ceremony in Rutland at the Lions Park Cenotaph, 175 Gray Road on November 11. Residents are asked to arrive by 10:30 am. the Color Party procession. The full list of Memorial Day ceremonies in the area is here.
