Veterans Day: Thank You for Your Service!

Students had a great time celebrating and honoring our veterans across the District for Veterans Day Nov. 11, 2025. Thank you to everyone who took time out of their day to attend one (or many) of our assemblies or even talk to students about what it means to be a veteran. Most importantly, thank you to everyone who has served!
Be sure to check out our building social media pages for more photos and videos!

OHS Veterans Day Assembly
OHS came together to celebrate Veterans Day with an amazing assembly honoring those who have served our country! Highlights included:

• An inspiring message from BOE member and veteran James Griffin
• A special recognition for veteran and SRO Sgt. John Wilkerson
• Beautiful performances from our OHS Choir
• Impressive demonstrations from the JROTC Mountainettes and Mountain Guard

Thank you to our JROTC cadets for planning such a meaningful and memorable event, what a way to honor our heroes!

Honoring Our Heroes OMS
OMS students in Gwen Gerard’s class had the incredible opportunity to hear from three amazing veterans — Toney VanZandt, Scott Smith and Paul Goode. These men are not only veterans, but also proud family members of OMS students, and they visited the class in honor of Veterans Day. They shared stories from their time in service, showed treasured mementos from their military experiences, and spoke about how serving has shaped their lives. Ms. Gerard’s favorite part of each of their talks was the message they left with our students: With a little hard work and grit, you can achieve anything you set your mind to.
What a powerful reminder of the courage, dedication, and sacrifice that protect our freedoms every day. We are so grateful for their service — and for the chance to learn from them!

South Veterans Day Parade and Assembly
South Elementary welcomed veterans to breakfast, a parade and a Veterans Day Assembly Nov. 6. Students were dressed in red, white and blue and had a great time thanking veterans! Thank you for your service!

East 3rd Grade at Branson Veterans Day Parade
East third grade celebrated Veterans Day by attending the Veterans Day parade in Branson.  Students have been learning about veterans and writing letters, which they handed out at the parade. 

North Veterans Day Lunch
Dressed in red, white and blue, North Elementary students greeted nearly 100 veterans Nov. 11. The special visitors were treated to lunch with students and heard a patriotic performance by fourth graders, which recognized veterans from each branch. Veterans also got to enjoy the beautiful artwork displayed on the wall that students had made. 

South VFW Award
The Ozark Veterans of Foreign Wars recently presented South Elementary with the Citizenship Education Award for “your enduring dedication to instilling patriotism and citizenship in your students and commitment to the remembrance of fallen veterans.”
The VFW visits the school each year to demonstrate the White Table Ceremony to fourth graders. The White Table Ceremony is in honor and remembrance to service members held prisoner of war or missing in action. Each part of the table represents something a soldier and their family may have felt or gone through. The fourth graders then perform the ceremony at the Veterans Day Assembly. 

OMS Veteran Wall
The Trailblazers team honored veterans with an inspiring display — a wall filled with photos and stories celebrating their service and sacrifice. Students shared with the class how they were related to the veteran, their branch of service and years serviced. Thank you to all who have served!

Stars and Stripes at East
Ms. Sloan’s class and Ms. Overstreet’s class at East colored parts of a flag and put them together to say a big thank you to all our veterans.