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Air Force lieutenant, a Kenilworth Sears alumnus, thanks students
Joseph Sears School staff members, and representatives of the school's fourth grade class took possession last month of an American flag donated by school alumnus Andrew Kochman, now a U.S. Air Force pilot serving in Afghanistan. Lt. Kochman's parents pre
Updated: July 1, 2012 11:32AM
When boys and girls from Joseph Sears School sat down last year to write cards to military personnel in Afghanistan, they didn’t know just who their hand-crafted messages of appreciation would reach, although they were targeted for former Kenilworth residents. Nor were they expecting any thanks for their efforts.
But when some of the cards – created as a special project to mark the 10 year commemoration of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks – reached Andrew Kochman, a 1st Lieutenant with the United States Air Force, he decided to acknowledge them in a very special fashion.
To show their appreciation, Lt. Kochman and members of his flight crew sent an American flag back to his parents, along with a certificate showing that the flag had come from Afghanistan.
Last month, Ron and Saynde Kochman took the flag and presented it officially to the school, and to some of the delighted youngsters whose missives originally reached their son.
“It was all strictly coincidence, but it was lovely,” fourth grade teacher Martha Maggiore said this week of the event. “And it was a surprise. The kids were very impressed and touched by Lt. Kochman’s action.”
Maggiore said the flag may be used in a Memorial Day ceremony, but it will eventually be framed in much the same manner that the Kochmans framed a similar flag their son sent earlier to them.
