My mom ran across this, and sent it to me, knowing i like teacher and school stories.


Subject: Remembrance - I like this teacher’s powerful message!
A lesson that should be taught in all schools . . and colleges

Back in September, on the first day of school, Martha Cothren, a social studies school teacher at Bobcaygeon (north of Peterborough Ontario) public school, did something not to be forgotten. On the first day of school, with the permission of the school superintendent, the principal and the building supervisor, she removed all of the desks out of her classroom.

When the first period kids entered the room they discovered that there were no desks.

'Ms.. Cothren, where're our desks?'

She replied, 'You can't have a desk until you tell me how you earn the right to sit at a desk.'

They thought, 'Well, maybe it's our grades.'

No,' she said.

'Maybe it's our behaviour.'



She told them, 'No, it's not even your behaviour.'

And so, they came and went, the first period, second period, third period. Still no desks in the classroom.

By early afternoon television news crews had started gathering in Ms.Cothren's classroom to report about this crazy teacher who had taken all the desks out of her room.

The final period of the day came and as the puzzled students found seats on the floor of the deskless classroom, Martha Cothren said, 'Throughout the day no one has been able to tell me just what he/she has done to earn the right to sit at the desks that are ordinarily found in this classroom. Now I am going to tell you.'

At this point, Martha Cothren went over to the door of her classroom and opened it.

Twenty-seven (27) War Veterans, all in uniforms, walked into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk. The Vets began placing the school desks in rows, and then they would walk over and stand alongside the wall. By the time the last soldier had set the final desk in place those kids started to understand, perhaps for the first time in their lives, just how the right to sit at those desks had been earned.

Martha said, 'You didn't earn the right to sit at these desks. These heroes did it for you. They placed the desks here for you. Now, it's up to you to sit in them. It is your responsibility to learn, to be good students, to be good citizens. They paid the price so that you could have the freedom to get an education.



Don't ever forget it.'

By the way, this is a true story.

These kinds of stories have their place, and I have nothing but respect for soldiers who have served their country, whether in war-time or not. But there's another side to the story. What about those who weren't soldiers?

My father had a glass eye caused by an accident when he was 16. When WWII broke out he volunteered for service. He was rejected. During the course of the war he volunteered three more times and was rejected every time. At the end of the war he was told he was eligible for a "volunteers medal". He told them to shove it.

He spent the war years working for the Department of Munitions, helping to ensue that the soldiers had the ammunition they needed to fight. He didn't receive, or expect, any kind of promotion during those 5 terrible years. He saw his friends and relatives march off to war, and many didn't return. He worked to aid in any way he could.

He didn't receive any accolades for what he did do. There were no grand parades for him. His children could not apply for special scholarships. There were no monuments or exclusive clubs and organisations dedicated to those who merely worked. As the soldiers returned and re-joined their old work places his opportunities for advancement disappeared.

Every April 25th he could only watch from the side-lines as the proud veterans marched though the towns and cities to the cheers of the populace while he could expect nothing but sneers for his inability to don a uniform.

He never complained.

But I feel I have a right to complain for him.

Great story! I love it!

But I have to admit, I'm skeptical it is a true story. It's hard to believe 27 vets would have just hung around all day long waiting for some kid to guess the correct answer, and that television crews would have arrived just because there were no desks in a classroom. (And who would have called those news crews, by the way?!)