Take a Veteran to School Day at Anthony Ochoa Middle School

Comcast has organized a special event as part of HISTORY CHANNEL’s Take a Veteran to School Day outreach initiative to take place on Monday from 1 to 3 p.m. at Anthony Ochoa Middle School located at 2121 Depot Road in the Hayward Unified School District.  Honored veteran guests will attend the event to share their stories and receive a heartfelt “thank you” for their service.

Take a Veteran to School Day, now in its 7th year, is HISTORY’s premiere public affairs outreach program, connecting veterans from all walks of life with students in schools and communities nationwide. In 2013, over 5,000 schools in all 50 states are expected to participate. As part of this campaign, HISTORY offers participating schools curriculum-based educational materials at www.veterans.com as well as a Veterans Day video produced with the US Department of Education, all provided free-of-charge.

“We are so pleased to be working with Comcast to honor veterans in this community,” said Dr. Libby O’Connell, Chief Historian and SVP, Corporate Outreach for HISTORY.  “As part of this program, students not only learn about Veterans Day, but they also learn important life lessons about service and commitment. And in the process, the veterans will receive a well-deserved thank you from all of us.”

“HUSD is honored to assist in this event with The History Channel and Comcast in the preservation and sharing of the history of American Veterans with students,” said Stan “Data” Dobbs, Superintendent and CEO for Hayward Unified School District and Navy Veteran.  “The Bay Area has a very rich and long standing military history and from a strategic logistics focus, Hayward has been a preservation for the American freedom in the bay.”

Take a Veteran to School Day is a key component of HISTORY’s broad veterans outreach campaign which also includes Thank a Veteran at Work, which encourages employers to recognize former military service men and women. As part of that campaign, Vice President Joe Biden First Lady Michelle Obama and Second Lady Dr. Jill Biden, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and actor Bradley Cooper have filmed public service announcements reminding all Americans to thank our nation’s veterans.   Over 500 companies have participated in the Thank A Veteran initiative.

“Celebrating the 94th birthday of an iconic Pearl Harbor Survivor, California’s Veteran of The Year, and a community citizen, Chief Mickey Ganitch is the hallmark of this event”, says Trustee Lisa Brunner, Hayward Board of Education and Marine Corps Veteran.

HISTORY also mobilizes people to “Thank a Vet” through an active social media campaign. From November 1st through November 11th, HISTORY will thank veterans from all branches of the service on Twitter using the hash tag #THANKAVET. A special website located at www.history.com/thank-a-vet houses the Twitter feed, making it easy for anyone to type in their Tweet and honor those who have served.