Teacher Appreciation Week - The staff at Seadrift School was treated as “Royalty” by the Seadrift Student Council members, Seadrift Cheerleaders, Braskam Contracting Services and Donald and Suzanne Beaver. Each day student council members presented the staff with a gift of appreciation. Braskam provided lunch on Tuesday and the Beavers provided lunch on Wednesday. The picture above shows the crowns each staff member was presented.POC Bug Award party: The lucky winners of a scooter and helmet were: Maddie Hawes and Keven Salinas.

POC BUG Party On April 30th, students who have received a BUG (Bring Up Grades) Award this year were treated to an ice cream party by Miss Ladybug, Donna Boyd. Enjoying the party are: Left side of table: Dalton Alford, Ronnie Carriles, Brock Blevins, Maddie Hawes, Mckaelyn Carriles and Jackie Gutierrez Right side of the table: Keven Salinas, Collin Branch, Faith Peeler and Miss Ladybug, Donna Boyd

Country singer Lizzie Sider might only be 15 years old, but she is already taking a stand for a cause that is important to her. The Florida native is traveling to schools all over her native state, on her No One Has the Power to Ruin Your Day anti-bullying tour. Lizzie visited Seadrift School to help spread the word. “Bullying doesn’t just happen in October during Bullying Prevention Awareness Month, it happens all year,” the teenager explains “As someone who understands what it is like to be bullied, I am on a mission to help anyone who doesn’t think anyone will listen.” As part of the assembly, Sider shares her own personal story of being teased in elementary school. She also performs her song, ‘Butterfly,’ which she co-wrote as a way to cope with her own pain from dealing with bullies. While visiting the Seadrift campus, Lizzie helped third grade students that raised butterflies through the life cycle be set free. The performance was enjoyed by all.

Students in Mrs. Kern’s Kindergarten Class at Seadrift School had a great time at their Easter party.

Students in Mrs. Kern’s Kindergarten Class at Seadrift School had a great time at their Easter party.

Students in Mrs. Ochoa’s POC 5th grade class made vocabulary hats and had a vocabulary parade. Shown here wearing their hats are: Jocelynn Miller, Brenley Walters, Esmeralda Garcia, Ally Luna, Mckaelyn Carriles, Eli Romo, Collin Branch, Taylor Ragusin, Balke Walters, Dalton Alford, Ronnie Carriles, Mrs. Ochoa and Dylon Schumann.

The Seadrift Kindergarten Class had a great time pampering their mothers for Mother’s Day! Students gave massages, manicures, and did hair and make-up for their mothers and special friends:

Cash Shirhall and Matthew Morgan gave Cash's Maw Maw a makeover.

Gunnner Evans and his mom Ashley

Adyn and his mom Audrey

Kyle Staggs and Yuliana Hernandez work on Kyle's mom Melissa's nails.

Logyn Middaugh and his mom Vanessa

Pioneer Village Field Trip
by Arin Cleary, 3rd grader
On May 2, the Seadrift School 3rd and 4th grade students traveled to Gonzales, Texas to visit Pioneer Village. I thought it was fun learning the history of Gonzales. We saw lots of things.
I liked the wooden cabin. In the cabin we got to go up the stairs to see the loft where the girls slept. It was cool looking at a real pioneer cabin. We also saw the blacksmith. That was very interesting. The person there showed us how the blacksmith heated metal to make tools. Then we went to the farm and the person there told us how the animals lived and how they’re cared for. I hope we get to go back because it was fun and interesting.

5th grade students in Mrs. Ochoa's POC class researched their decendants' countries of origin. They prepared a recipe from each nation to share with the class. Students sharing the meal are: Dylon Schumann, Dalton Alford, Brenley Walters, Esmeralda Garcia, McKaelyn Carriles, Ronnie Carriles, Faith Peeler, Brooklyn Redmond, Jocelynn Luna and Blake Walters.

Kindergarten students in Ms. Peter’s class at POC Elementary learned about the rain forest and made tree frog hats:

Sitting: Landin Rhoads, Lyric Lopez, Jerimiah Bensley, Tanner Pittman. Kneeling: Justin Gossett, Cole Spicak, Anthony Flores, Jaydin Rhoads. Standing: Lauren Authement, Kamyla Guzman, Blake Bowman and Luke Doggett.

Humpty Dumpty Engineering Challenge
Seadrift PreK

Ms. Peters’ Port O’Connor Kindergarten class while learning the life cycle of a butterfly. Students are: Jerimiah Bensley, Luke Doggett, Tanner Pittman, Melany Guzman, Landin Rhoads, Justin Gossett, Anthony Flores, Jaydin Rhoads, Cole Spicak, Blake Bowman and Lauren Authement

Rowan Holley and Layla Myers enjoy their Easter snacks at Seadrift School.

Warrior’s Weekend VIII will be held on Saturday 17 May, 2014.  Come by the Port O’Connor Community Center beginning on Thursday, May 8th until the event on Saturday to view a spectacular sand sculpture which will be in progress around the clock until the day of the event, by artist, Gloria Fric, who is donating her time and talents.

The troops will arrive Saturday morning around 9:00 a.m., by chartered buses from Brooke Army Medical Center, joining other wounded soldiers who arrived earlier from other military installations across the country.  After a grand welcome rally, they will immediately board their boats and begin fishing between 9 and 9:30 a.m.  There will be a friendly competition with an official weigh-in and awards presented at a dinner that evening around 5:30PM, accompanied by music and addresses by military dignitaries and from our heroes themselves.

Join us in this, our eighth annual event, to put into action the fact that you really support our troops!

Can you help a wounded warrior?

Wounded soldiers are looking forward to Warrior’s Weekend, a welcome respite from their on-going medical treatments due to injuries incurred while in service of our country. Comments from these men include “I have nothing else to look forward to,” and “I do nothing but stare at four walls all day.” Being in Port O’Connor, fishing and enjoying good food and a few laughs with their buddies, and the warm reception and expressions of thanks they receive from everyone involved is the highlight of their year.

The Committee can get them to Port O’Connor, but they must have places to stay. Do you have room for one or more wounded warriors? Almost any type of space will do: a house, bunk house, guest room, etc. If you don’t have a room, please ask your neighbors who do. Please call Bill Tigrett at 361-983-2671 if you have space available on May 16 through 18. You’ll be glad you did!

From left to right: Robert Saucedo, Ia Drang Vet from Giddings, Texas; Joe R. Pena, Ia Drang Vet from Port Lavaca, Joe Galloway, author of We Were Soldiers Once and Young, formerly from Refugio, Texas, currently residing in Concord, North Carolina; Ed Times, Ia Drang Vet from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and another Vietnam Veteran at the March 29 unveiling and dedication.

Vietnam Veterans Monument Dedicated on Vietnam Veterans Day, the 41st anniversary of the day the last American combat troops left Vietnam. Joe and Rose Pena of Port Lavaca attend unveiling.

Clouds overshadowed the sun as gusts of wind greeted the gathering crowd on the grounds of the Texas State Capitol on March 29, 2014. Joe and Rose Pena from Port Lavaca were among the thousands gathered there to mark the historic event: the unveiling of the Vietnam Veterans Monument.

The idea for a monument honoring Vietnam Veterans from Texas began a decade ago and was introduced to the Texas Legislature by Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa and State Representative Wayne Smith and approved by the 79th Legislature in 2005. The Texas Capitol Vietnam Veterans Monument Committee – Veterans who volunteered for the duty – raised the necessary funds and directed the building of the monument. It was funded fully through private donations, with more than 600 individual, organization and corporate donors.

A special part of the Vietnam Veterans Monument, known as “The 34117 Project” is to honor and remember each of the Texans who died in the Vietnam War, including the 105 Texans who remain Missing In Action. Each of them is individually recognized on two dog tags. One set of Texas Hero Tags is encased in a vintage ammunition can entombed inside the Texas Capitol Vietnam Veterans Monument. A duplicate set is displayed for the public in the Texas Vietnam Heroes Exhibit, which has toured the state accompanied by a volunteer motorcycle honor guard. Last year in March at a ceremony at the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library in Austin, a Reading of the Names was conducted. More than one hundred volunteers, including Joe Pena, participated in the reading.

Following a welcome by Ms. Karoni Forrester, Representing Texas’ 3.417 Hero Families, presentation of the Colors, the Pledge of Allegiance, National Anthem, Invocation, and remarks, it was time for the Monument to be unveiled. Rose Pena described the scene: “The sun came out and shone on the Monument, leaving the spectators in the shade. The silence before the drapes dropped turned into gasps, applause, and sighs of emotion. Looking into the audience, one could see smiles, tears both from the veterans and family members. Truly March 29, 2014 was a day of honoring our Vietnam War Veterans, both the ones who paid the ultimate price, and the ones with invisible scars.”

Governor Rick Perry accepted the Monument on behalf of the people of Texas with these words: “The monument we dedicate today will stand as an ongoing demonstration of the depth of our appreciation for the sacrifices of our Vietnam veterans, and a reminder of what is noble and good about the human spirit. It will stand as a declaration in Texas, we understand how blessed we are to have warriors ready to step forward and draw a line between us and those who would do us harm.”

The governor also highlighted the contributions of the Vietnamese nationals who fought alongside Americans in the war, many of whom went on to pursue U.S. citizenship and settle in Texas.

The Texas Capitol Vietnam Veterans Monument rises 14 feet from the northeast Capitol grounds near the Peace Officers Memorial. Above a “sunset red” granite pediment matching the Capitol itself, a series of large bas-relief panels capture scenes depicting the men and women of Texas who served in the U.S. Armed Forces in Vietnam. Poised above the panels, five “Dawn Patrol” figures represent the service and sacrifice of Texas combat infantry troops, and benches emblazoned with the MIA/POW symbol remind us of Texans who were held prisoner or are unaccounted for in Vietnam.

The Texas Capitol Vietnam Veterans Monument honors all Texans who served in the U.S. military in Vietnam, including those who didn’t start in Texas but got here as fast as they could.

For an educational and inspirational tour of the Monument: tour.tcvvm.org