Honor Trip by Alec

Honor Trip by Alec - May 2018 Scholarship Essay

It was a cold October morning as everyone attending the Huron County Honor Trip packed onto the cramped blue bus with dirty windows and uncomfortable chairs. My teacher, Mr. Whaley, along with seven of my classmates and I would be the first group to ever go on this trip representing Norwalk High School. On the Huron County Honor Trip, we would be helping all of the veterans anyway possible as we all visited landmarks and memorials all across Washington D.C. As the bus drove to D.C., I continued to feel nervous about the trip and then I remembered what Mr. Whaley said to me, “Alec I would love for you to be on this trip. You’re a great student and other students look up to you as a leader. I know you will do great.” After remembering that conversation, I stopped feeling nervous and focused on my job for the weekend.
I cannot begin to describe how amazing of an experience that trip was. We were able to see so many great monuments like the Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and Arlington National Cemetery along with The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Although the sightseeing was great, the parts of the trip I will never forget are all of the life lessons I learned from the amazing veterans. On the trip we were fortunate enough to be in the company of Mr. Ebinger, a World War II veteran who served in the European theatre and was in the fifth wave during D-Day. He was a kind man who always told us funny stories about his youth while also emphasizing to us that life is precious and we should care for everyone. As we were leaving Arlington Cemetery, Mr. Ebinger said this to me and my good friend Darren, “You could show politicians all of these graves and we would still have wars.” That really stuck to me because I realized it does not matter who you are, we all must care for each other. People must stop fighting one another over material goods and ideas that are nothing compared to human life.
Mr. Ebinger recently passed away but I will never forget what I learned from him.
Another great man I met on my trip was Mr. Nash. Mr. Nash was a Vietnam Veteran who lived in our town and he even knew my dad. “You’re Aaron’s son? I’ve known your dad since he was a little kid. He’s a great man and I see a lot of him in you,” he said to me as we were walking one day. While I spent time with Mr. Nash, he told me about his experience in the war and the events he had to witness. Hearing all of these stories sparked up a new sense of motivation in my life. These men and women sacrificed so much of their lives just to defend our country. I then thought to myself that if they can push through everything they have experienced, then I can conquer any obstacle life throws at me. Anything I will have to go through will be nothing compared to what these great men and women have overcome. These lessons have been the new driving motivation behind me becoming the best version of myself while also uplifting others in any way I can. That trip made me realize that if actions truly do speak louder than words, then I must become the most deafening noise anyone has ever heard.