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HRHS honors 'Falcon Heroes'

Contributed by: Steve Shultz/YourHub.com on 5/12/2008

Thirty-four grads now in military showcased

A librarian at Highlands Ranch High School is working to ensure graduates of the school who are currently serving in the military are not forgotten.

Susan Martin, a library assistant at HRHS, organizes and maintains a "wall of heroes," a wall dedicated to honoring and remembering graduates currently serving in all branches of the military through photographs, names, e-mail correspondence and newspaper clippings.

Martin and retired P.E. teacher Tandy Ortiz put up the HRHS Falcon Heroes wall in February 2007 to recognize Cpl. Ryan Mobley and Spc. Matthew Mobley, identical twins who graduated from the high school in 2004 who have since been serving in the Marines and Army, respectively.

But Martin doesn't want to take sole credit for the project.

"It's a school thing -- I just coordinate it," she said.

Now, a little more than a year later, 34 graduates are posted on the wall. Martin said the school has set out to try to contact as many HRHS graduates as they can who are now in the military. She said she asks students to notify her if they know of a graduate of the school they have not yet recognized on the wall.

Martin said the school sends care packages of cards, letters, beef jerky, foil-packaged tuna, protein bars, trail mix and socks to the "Falcon Heroes." She said they also send get-well cards to soldiers whenever they are injured, and the school regularly receives responses from them expressing their gratitude.

"We like to put their e-mails up," Martin said. "If you stop and read them, you will see how grateful they are. A lot of them said they're amazed their high school remembers them. It means a lot to them that their high school remembers them. And it's a two-way street -- it's really good for the students to be aware. We just want them to be patriotic."

Martin said she asks for donations from staff, students and parents to help keep the project going. Right now, the HRHS Falcon Heroes wall is located just outside the library, kept together on red poster board. She said she hopes to eventually raise enough money to display the Falcon Heroes on a nice cork board.

"The main thing we're trying to accomplish is, hopefully the majority of students will realize that there are men and women out there not much older than them fighting for their freedom," Martin said. "(It's a way of saying) thank you for serving our country and fighting for our freedom."

Martin asks anyone who knows of any Highlands Ranch High School graduates currently serving in the military to call her at the school at 303-387-2500 so she can add them to the wall.


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