Commit to Courage Ceremony honors WWII veteran

By Caitlyn Kolakowski

Medal of Honor recipient, Colonel Walter Joseph Marm, Jr., was honored Thursday, Sept. 16, at Lane’s Commit to Courage ceremony in the auditorium.

Marm is a retired colonel who served in the Vietnam War. During a charge against an enemy bunker he was shot in the face and his jaw was wired shut until it healed.

Marm came to Lane because the city was hosting an event for all surviving Medal of Honor recipients. For one day, these recipients went to schools to share their stories. The event included a video featuring past recipients of the medal telling their stories, ROTC color guard presentation, a welcome from Dr. LoBosco, an introduction by Colonel Kochheiser, and a speech by Colonel Marm.

Colonel Marm’s speech included words of encouragement for Lane students.

“Continue to work and study hard. You are never done. If you take one step at a time, you will succeed,” Marm said. “You can be anything you want to be. Going to new places makes you appreciate where you come.”

Last year, certain English classes were asked to write essays about the Medal of Honor for a competition. First place winner, Taylor Person, Div. 181, received a $1,000 check. Second place went to Shane Donahue, Div. 276, and third to Alicia Walker, Div. 162. They were honored at the event.

JROTC, led by Colonel Kochheiser, helped run the event.

“[This event] was a service learning project that we had started in March. We were learning about the Medal of Honor,” said Colonel Kochheiser. “We read through and assembled the book of essays.”

The book was a compilation of the students’ essays about the Medal of Honor and featured the top three winning essays. It was presented to Colonel Marm during the event as a gift.

Overall, the administration and staff were pleased with the event.

“I was so proud of Lane and the welcome that we gave Colonel Marm,” said LoBosco. “It was the single most complimented event we have had [this year].”

“The reaction that I saw from the kids was great,” said Colonel Kochheiser. “Even though he was not that great of a speaker, the kids looked past that. It gave them a whole new perspective.”

Students also had positive things to say about the assembly.

“Colonel Marm was just a man from a small community in North Carolina but he was honored with the medal,” said Cadet Captain Sreeruppa Dey, Div. 025. “This shows me that anyone can be a hero.”

“I learned that people like him are not made up. They actually exist,” said Tina Leszkiewicz, Div. 048.

Teachers also noticed the impact the event had on students.

“It is impressive for the kids to actually see a Medal of Honor winner in person and to see that he is not a big superhero,” said Colonel Kochheiser. “This brought home the fact that he was human because the kids were able to see him and even touch him for that matter.”

Even students who did not enjoy the event as much claimed it was a worthwhile ceremony.

“The assembly was not that exciting, but really it wasn’t for us to enjoy so much as it was for us to honor an American hero,” said Ingrid Hagan-Richardson, Div. 042.

Student groups other than JROTC helped out in the event.

“I sang in the advanced mixed choir for the congressional medal of honor assembly. We sang the national anthem and the armed forces songs,” said Hagan-Richardson.

“I participated in the event because I was asked to play with the band as a part of it. The songs I played with the band were: ‘God Bless America’ and ‘America the Beautiful’,” said Leszkiewicz. “I enjoyed the fact that I was allowed to be a part of it.”