Haley Cabral was chosen from all of the 8th grade Social Studies students at T.S. Hill Middle School and with that honor was selected to read her essay at the annual Veterans Day Observance Program held at the Bearcat Event Center.
Below is her essay! Congratulations Haley! The Veterans and the Dexter community is proud and honored to have heard your essay on Tuesday!
What Does Freedom Mean to My Family?
What Does Freedom Mean to Me?
"What is freedom? That was the question that was posed to me. At first, I wasn’t very excited about writing an essay. But as I put more thought into the subject, I became more and more enthusiastic about the idea of being able to express my gratitude to all of the men and women who have sacrificed so much in order for America to be the free country that it is today.
In America, we enjoy many freedoms every day of our lives. For instance, we have freedom of speech and religion. It is our choice to marry who we want, and we have the right to vote for our leaders. All of these choices have been purchased through the sacrifice of veterans.
Many of the things we have in America are because of our veterans. I feel safe in my home and in my community. I have few restraints in the choices that I make every day. This is because I know I am protected by our men and women in uniform. They protect me even though they’ve never met me.
I am very grateful to the veterans for all of the sacrifices they have made so that we can be free. Many people in our country have lost loved ones as they have served our country, preserving our liberties.
In conclusion, we owe a lot to all of our veterans. We should never forget all of the sacrifices that our veterans have selflessly made so that we can be a free country. So the next time that you are listening to music, the next time you are picking out your clothes, or the next time you are going to church, don’t forget how lucky you are to have all of the privileges that you do. There are people around the world who would die for these rights that we take for granted, and we have these freedoms because of the men and women in uniform who have fought and died to keep them. Thank you, veterans, for fighting for our rights and our freedoms."
