Parkersburg High School history students mark Pearl Harbor Day
Parkersburg High School’s 10th-grade Honors American History class stands at attention and salutes the flag while band members play the national anthem Wednesday morning during a Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day ceremony in front of the school. (Photo by Michael Erb)
PARKERSBURG — Parkersburg High School students Wednesday honored those who served and died at Pearl Harbor during an early-morning ceremony for Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.
The ceremony was arranged by Brian S. Kesterson’s 10th-grade Honors American History class. The event began at 8:05 with drums, marking the moment when the attack first began on Dec. 7, 1941.
Prior to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the battle for Pearl Harbor was the deadliest attack on American soil. Japanese planes attacked the naval base in the early dawn hours, with more than 2,400 American soldiers killed, nearly 1,200 wounded, and dozens of ships sunk or destroyed.
“Students need to understand the past, and to develop that sense of patriotism, honor and duty to their country,” Kesterson said. “They need to realize and honor the people of the past and the sacrifices they made, and to celebrate the Greatest Generation.”
The ceremony began with the drum march which led to the flag pole in front of the school. Band members played The National Anthem while students presented the flag. Kesterson read an account of the attack on Pearl Harbor, along with an explanation of Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day and the significance of the event in United States history.
Buglers Ayden Nutter, left, and Abby Smith, right, play Taps during the closing moments of a Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day ceremony Wednesday morning at Parkersburg High School. (Photo by Michael Erb)
Two buglers played Taps to end the ceremony. More th
Jorie Kennedy, 2016 Wood County Belle. (Photo Provided)
Dorothy Lee Hoyt
Ronnie Jenkins
Dave Smith and Bernie Cleveland pause for a prayer Wednesday before dropping wreaths in the Muskingum River to honor the fallen from the attack on Pearl Harbor 75 years ago. (Photo by Janelle Patterson)
James Evans, 68, left, of Lowell, stands at attention alongside members of the Parkersburg-Marietta Marine Corps League during the Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day service at Muskingum Park Wednesday. (Photo by Janelle Patterson)
Veterans and Marietta High School students have lunch in the armory following the Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day service at Muskingum Park Wednesday. (Photo by Janelle Patterson)
Parkersburg High School’s 10th-grade Honors American History class stands at attention and salutes the flag while band members play the national anthem Wednesday morning during a Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day ceremony in front of the school. (Photo by Michael Erb)
Buglers Ayden Nutter, left, and Abby Smith, right, play Taps during the closing moments of a Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day ceremony Wednesday morning at Parkersburg High School. (Photo by Michael Erb)
Oma B. Roberts
This security camera image shows the suspect in the Tuesday night robbery of La Cafe on Murdoch Avenue in Parkersburg. (Photo Provided)
April Darlene Layner Swearingen
Representatives from many area military fraternal organizations and military veterans gathered at Point Park Wednesday to commemorate the 75th anniversay of the attack on Pearl Harbor that brought America into World War II. Those assembled dropped wreaths into the Ohio River to honor the fallen and each branch of the service and local veteran organizations. (Photo by Brett Dunlap)
Parkersburg South senior Devan Wilson won the 100 yard breaststroke with a time of 1:13.40 during a triangular on Wednesday night at the Parkersburg YMCA. Photo by Jay W. Bennett.
Parkersburg junior Kate Snider turned in a victorious time of 1:06.68 on Wednesday evening at the YMCA to best the field in the 100 yard backstroke. Photo by Jay W. Bennett.
an 20 students participated in the ceremony, with hundreds of other PHS students gathered to watch.
Catherine Onestinghel, a 10th-grader and commanding officer for the ceremony, said students had been practicing for several days.
“Today, it hit, the emotions were more intense,” she said. “It definitely gave all of us a different point of view.”
Brooke Marshall, a 10th-grader who participated in the ceremony, said it was an eye-opening experience
“It didn’t really sink in what we were doing until we were out there this morning,” she said. “It’s such a shocking moment in our history, and it’s kind of been forgotten over the years.”
The Parkersburg High School Navy Junior ROTC also held a day-long lesson on Pearl Harbor today and its impact on modern times, led by Senior Naval Science Instructor David Ozeroff.