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High schoolers lead grassroots movement to restore 500 veteran graves in honor of Memorial Day


"Such a great tribute to the service members who gave their lives!"

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High school students restore veteran graves for Memorial Day.

Memorial Day is America's holiday to honor the brave men and women who lost their lives serving in the military. And one group of high schoolers in Cheektowaga, New York, located in the western part of the state, is doing their part to make sure the fallen veterans are recognized on the special holiday.

In honor of Memorial Day weekend, a group of high school students and community volunteers gathered to restore and raise veteran grave markers at Mount Calvary Cemetery.

Led by community member Paul Mueller, it is the second year the group has come together. "High school students uncovered and raised about 500 forgotten veteran grave markers at Mount Calvary Cemetery for Memorial Day!" news station WKBW captioned the video.

"You know, a lot of these people sacrificed so much. To see the memorials and not even be able to see the names on them, it's kind of depressing," one high school student shared with WKBW.

Mueller became inspired to lead the project for very personal reasons. "My dad is buried over here. He's a World War II vet, and I'd come out here every Father's Day. And I would notice that his headstone had sunk into the ground. And I'd bring a little bucket of stone with me and raise it up," he shared.

He continued, "I started looking around and seeing that there's a lot of other stones that are going down, down, down. And they don't have any family members that could come here with a bucket and raise it up. So I got in touch with cemetery, offered our services."

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

Mueller added, "To see these young kids giving back, they're reading the names on the stones. It's really great." Another student also shared, "It will be kind of cool to walk by and be able to say, 'I helped do that'."

In an interview with WIVBTV, Mueller also explained, "Many of us aren’t veterans, so this is our way of giving back to our country and to our veterans."

Army veteran Mitch Mayor, a volunteer with the group, told WIVBTV, "It just makes me feel good that I’m able, in my very small way, to give back to honor these ladies and gentlemen who served this great country of ours."

- YouTubeLearn more about the History of Memorial Day. #HistoryChannel Subscribe for more HISTORY: http://histv.co/SubscribeHistoryYT ...

There are over 2,000 veteran graves in the cemetery, and the group's goal is to restore all of them. Mueller shared that last year, the group restored a total of 900 graves. "Our goal this year is actually to finish this. We’ll be coming back hopefully one more time and we’ll be up to the 2,000 range," he said.

And many viewers were touched by the volunteer efforts made by all. "It’s important to remember them forever they sacrificed so much for all of us," one wrote. Another commented, "Such a great tribute to the service members who gave their lives!
Thanks!❤️❤️❤️"Another shared, "This is such a life experience for these kids to grow with!" And another also added, "Wonderful for these students to do this."

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French woman reunites with the American boyfriend she hasn't seen in the 75 years since they fell in love during WWII.

Truly beautiful. If only we could all be so loved.

France 24/YouTube


75 years later, D-Day veteran meets long-lost French lovewww.youtube.com


There are millions of love stories in the world, but occasionally one stands out—like this one.

Falling in love is a universal human phenomenon without a universal definition. It can be a slow-building fire or a flash in the pan. It can happen over years, or over a single cup of coffee. Sometimes it fizzles and fades, and sometimes it lingers for a lifetime.

We all love a good love story. With so much pain and sadness in the world, stories of the enduring power of love lift us up and remind us of the beauty of real human connection.

We also love stories of people living well into old age and having significant experiences in their later years. Such stories give us hope and remind us that anything is possible.

This story of an American man and a French woman who met during the WWII is both, and it will make you believe in the mystery of love and the enduring power it can have.

K.T. Robbins and Jeannine Ganaye fell in love when Robbins was stationed in France 75 years ago, but their relationship would be short-lived.

He was 24. She was 18. He was serving in the U.S. army, stationed in her village in northeastern France. They were both caught up in the trials of war and the triumphs of new-found love.

According to TODAY, when Robbins was transferred to the Eastern Front, he had to say a quick goodbye to Ganaye. They talked of the possibility of him coming back for her. He took a photograph of her with him.

They wouldn't see one another again after that.

Robbins was sent back to America after the war, where he eventually got married and started a hardware store. Ganaye moved on, too, marrying and having five kids of her own in France.

They'd both left WWII with thoughts of reunion. Ganaye had even started to learn English in the hopes that Robbins would return. But life happened, and those hopes had to be abandoned. "You know, when you get married, after that you can't do it anymore,'' Robbins said.

Neither forgot about the other, however. And neither could have predicted that they'd get another chance 75 years later.

Robbins and Ganeye—now Pierson—recently reunited for the first time since the war, and it's seriously the sweetest thing.

He is 97. She is 92. His wife of 70 years has passed way, and her husband has passed as well.

Robbins was interviewed by French a television station for a D-Day anniversary segment, and he shared the photo he still had of Pierson.

He thought maybe they could track down his former sweetheart's family, never imagining that she would still be alive herself—or that she would live within 40 miles of the village of Briey, where they had met more than seven decades before.

In a video shared by France 24, a reporter informs Robbins that Pierson is alive and well, and that she is waiting for him to meet with her. His surprise and joy is palpable as he laughs and kisses the reporter on the forehead.

The video then cuts to the former couple's reunion, and their chemistry is instantaneous. "Jeanine Ganaye," Robbins says, as he walks up to her. The two embrace, and she kisses his face over and over. There are smiles and tears as they sit side by side, holding onto one another's hands.

"I always loved you," Robbins tells her. "You never got out of my heart."

Pierson told the television station, "I always thought about him, thinking maybe he was out there, that maybe he'd come." The two spent several hours together before they had to part once again—but this time with plans for another meeting.

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This gold medalist deserves a shout-out for returning her award to Prince Harry.

You truly are a class act, Sgt. Elizabeth Marks.

Do you know about the Invictus Games?

This year's just wrapped up in Orlando, Florida, and they might just be the coolest sporting event not on your radar.

Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Invictus Games.

The event brought together more than 500 athletes from 15 different countries. And the competition was fierce.

Launched in 2014 by Prince Harry, the games allow both active-duty and veteran military members who've been injured to compete in various sports. 

First lady Michelle Obama and Prince Harry meet with kids of service members at the opening ceremony. Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Invictus Games.

"The word 'Invictus' means 'unconquered,'" the event's website explains, noting the games were launched to honor those who've sacrificed for their countries — not give them sympathy.

"It embodies the fighting spirit of the wounded, ill, and injured service members and what these tenacious men and women can achieve, post injury."

While every athlete there deserves a salute, Sgt. Elizabeth Marks, a 25-year-old in the U.S. Army, did something during the games that was especially cool.

Sgt. Elizabeth Marks poses with Prince Harry. Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Invictus Games.

After dominating in all four of her swimming competitions, Marks handed one of the gold medals she won back to Prince Harry, who had presented her with the award.

Instead of keeping the medal herself, Marks — who has no feeling in her left leg after sustaining a hip injury in Iraq about six years ago — requested Harry give it to Papworth Hospital in the U.K.

Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Invictus Games.

Why? The folks at Papworth Hospital "absolutely saved [her] life" at the Invictus Games in 2014, she said.

Two years ago, Marks nearly died at the games in London. Papworth came to her rescue.

Marks fell ill after arriving across the pond to compete and woke up days later after having been in an induced coma.


Photo by Alex Menendez/Getty Images for Invictus Games.

If it hadn't been for the team at Papworth, who'd scrambled to put her on life support after she went into respiratory distress syndrome, Marks likely wouldn't be alive today.

"I can't thank the U.K. enough for having that kind of medical support and taking such good care of me," she said, BBC News reported.

"How do you say thanks to the people that saved your life?"

Marks' selfless gesture of gratitude embodies what the Invictus Games are all about: honoring those who've sacrificed for others.

Whether they be a service member, a nurse, a teacher, or even just a friend who helped you survive a particularly rough time, we all have people in our lives who deserve credit in getting us where we are today.

Marks' story serves as a great reminder: Now is the time to tell them thanks.

Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Invictus Games.

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The heartwarming way some veterans are coping with what they saw at war is surprising: horses.

'It gives you a break from always living in the past.'

Going to war changes people.

It's undeniable. We welcome back veterans with gratitude for their service, but what happens when the fanfare dies down and they try to shift back into a "normal" daily life?

For many, the transition is incredibly difficult and made even worse by post-traumatic stress disorder.

This table, which documents the types of stressors experienced in 2003 across various combat zones and military branches, is a staggering reminder of just how much terrible stuff our veterans have witnessed.

Chart info via Department of Veterans Affairs National Center for PTSD.

Luckily there are ways to make life better for some of our returning veterans, like spending time with magnificent creatures.

A program in New Jersey could serve as a model for helping veterans and other traumatized people (like at-risk youth and bereaved children) to cope with the world around them again. It's called Spring Reins of Life, and it pairs up people with horses during therapy sessions that calm veterans' nerves and teaches them to connect and communicate again.

 

Michael Otto Steiger is a U.S. Marine who had been deployed to Iraq in 2005.

Michael Otto Steiger chokes up talking about how Spring Reins of Life helps him:

"I know we all have our different coping mechanisms for dealing with our symptoms of PTSD, and being out here I don't feel like a person with PTSD. I just feel … I guess average or normal."

See more about how the program works:

The program is accredited by the Equine Growth and Learning Association; known as EAGALA, it's a nonprofit that deals with horse-assisted psychotherapy. According to the organization, 90% of donations is spent directly on programming thanks to support from volunteers.

Go beyond just thanking a veteran — help heal them.

Regardless of how differently everyone feels about the necessity of war, it's easy to agree that veterans deserve services like this when they return. Peace of mind and a chance at a happy life is the least we can do.

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