Local veterans who once wore an armed forces uniform and are now either working in the private sector or retired felt honored during a patriotic themed assembly hosted Wednesday morning at Virginia Parks Elementary School in celebration of Veterans Day.

Children at the school honored dads, grandfathers, great-grandfathers and uncles of classmates during a special schoolwide assembly organized by teacher Janet Stanhope in the gym.

Ceres native Larry Parshall was invited by great-grandson first-grader Nathan Azevedo. He was 17 when he went into the U.S. Marine Corps and served from 1967 to 1976.

“In nine years I served in Okinawa, Japan, Vietnam, East Coast, West Coast,” said the former tank crewman who grew up in South Modesto. He later served in the Army Reserves and then became an Oakdale Police officer. “I’ve been serving my community a long time.”

Today Parshall enjoys playing grandfather to 15 grandkids and six great-grandchildren.

Osvaldo “Ozzie” Estremera of Ceres was a guest of his two grandsons, Adan and Abel Valencia. Estremera served as an artilleryman in the Army from 1970 to 1974, stationed in the states and in Panama as the Vietnam War was winding down.

“We were getting ready just in case,” he said. Most were being stationed in Germany and Korea but Estremera requested Panama due to being bilingual in English and Spanish.

Entering the Army at age 24 allowed him to learn discipline and “understand more about manhood.”

Skills learned care of the armory would later help him become a machinist after he left the service. He also worked as a warehouseman for the Stanislaus County Probation Department.

“Every year we enjoy hearing and seeing the traditions, the symbols, the stories that you share with us,” teacher Janet Stanhope told the veterans.

She also told the student body assembled in the multi-purpose room that military veterans are the reason they would be enjoying a school holiday on Monday.

Ceres American Legion Commander Pete Samaniego reflected on the longstanding tradition of the school honoring veterans at an annual assembly, noting that some of the students who sat on the floor years ago have already graduated from college. Samaniego explained that he joined the Marine Corps and served from 1971 to 1977. His jobs varied from MP to office clerk, to Marine barracks security.

After the presentation of colors by the American Legion Post 491 Color Guard, fourth-grader Roxy Garcia sang the National Anthem and students sang numerous enthusiastic renditions of patriotic songs, including “This Land is Your Land,” “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” “You’re a Grand Old Flag,” and “God Bless America.” A slide show was shown depicting relatives of staff members serving in the military who could not be at the event.

Members of the American Legion Honor Guard fired a 21-gun salute outside the gym as they do at the funerals of deceased veterans. The three rapid volleys of gunfire excited the students who could hear the reports through the open door. 

Walt Butler served in the U.S. Navy for six years aboard the USS Hornet which journeyed off the coast of Vietnam. He was a postal clerk in the Navy and when he left worked in the Ceres Post Office for 30 years.

Yolanda Whited told students how she served as a secretary four years in the Army from 1989 to 1993.

“I am the daughter of a Vietnam veteran and also the granddaughter of a World War II veteran – all of us are Army,” Whited said.

Steve Whitney served in the Marines during Vietnam for 11 years, and was an instructor at Camp Pendleton.

“It’s an honor for us to be here,” Whitney told the students.

Whitney also told students that “there’s no good war and we go to war for America.”

Other veterans who attended included Dave Pratt who was in the Navy from 1966 to 1970 in Vietnam.

Freddy Morales, first vice president of the Ceres American Legion, served three years (1967-1970) in the Marine Corps and earned a Purple Heart after being severely wounded in Vietnam.

John Warren served in the Navy and went to Vietnam twice on a destroyer which followed aircraft carriers around “and made sure they didn’t get into trouble.”

“My job was navigating the ship which sometimes included steering the ship,” Warren said.

Stanhope, whose son served in the Army and her father served in the Navy, has been organizing the event each year for many years.

Students were asked to bring pictures and posters of service personnel who were unable to attend or who have passed away.

Student Council officers read a statement explaining how Veteran’s Day came about after World War I.

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Veterans took time to briefly introduce themselves to the students and what they did in the military. They included Pedro Raya, Jake Jacobson, Wayne Scholkowfsky, Joshua Merrill, Denis Gregoire, Tiffany Scoggin, Eric Gardea and John Butler.