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Four students were chosen to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the wreath actually said Santa Paula Middle School. This was an amazing opportunity for these students. Larry Alamillo organized not only the trip, but this opportunity for deserving students. The students chosen and pictured above are: Jessica Rodriguez and Carlos Gomez are in the back, Hilda Soriano and Tobin Fincher are the ones laying the wreath. This wreath laying occurred on June 19, 2014 at Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia.
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Students have good time on DC trip
June 27, 2014
By Brian D. Wilson
Santa Paula News
Santa Paula 8th grade students are back from their trip to Washington, D.C.
The group toured a number of historical sites in and near the nation’s capital. One of the highlights for the group was a visit to Arlington National Cemetery. Four of the students were given the honor of presenting a wreath that was placed at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Some of the historical sites they visited include the Washington Monument, Thomas Jefferson’s home at Monticello just outside Charlottesville, Virginia and George Washington’s home at Mount Vernon, Virginia. Other stops included Ford’s Theater, the Jamestown Settlement, Colonial Williamsburg including the Governors’ Palace, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, The Vietnam Veterans, Korean War Veterans and Lincoln Memorials. They also saw a baseball game between the Washington Nationals and the Atlanta Braves, plus “The Lion King” at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
Several of the students talked about their experiences upon returning from the 8-day trip. Sandra Bermudez said it was all very interesting. “It was really fun to see George Washington’s house and to see places like Mount Vernon.” She added that the most fun part of the trip was to go to Thomas Jefferson’s house.
Bodde Stewart said the Washington Monument was his favorite stop. He said the group went up 500 feet inside the monument, which is just 35 feet short of the top. Stewart said the view was “awesome.” He added, “I’d definitely go back to Washington, D.C. and Virginia and Pennsylvania.” Did he learn anything he didn’t already know? “I learned a lot more about Thomas Jefferson than I already knew; a lot more about what he did, like how many books he had, how many letters he wrote. He wrote over a thousand letters.”
Jessica Harvey said Monticello was her favorite place to visit. The kids didn’t get much free time, but she said they did get to relax on the bus on some of the longer rides. Did she learn anything new about the Capital? “Not really,” she said. “I studied a lot because history is one of my favorite subjects. Harvey said she’d like to see more of Washington. “I would have liked to have gone into the White House,” she added. The young people were all disappointed that they didn’t get to tour the White House.
Kelsey Stewart was one of the chaperones for the trip and she said, “I loved the trip! It took me a lifetime to make it there and I was in awe with each new day that greeted us. Being a School Board Trustee I was quite fascinated with the Capitol Building and thrilled to sit in on a House of Representatives session. It was right up my alley and I understood exactly what they were doing.”
She added that it was a fast paced trip and she would have enjoyed more time to explore all there was to see. But, she said, “I have no complaints at all. I also found Thomas Jefferson’s home in Monticello to be rather impressive. I must now research more about him and the impact he had on our country. I had no idea that he was in office when Abraham Lincoln was born, nor did I know that Lincoln idolized Jefferson.”
Larry Alamillo, an Art Teacher at Isbell organizes this trip every year for the students and Stewart could not say enough about his dedication. “He works all year to plan this trip and my hat is off to him!”
