Soldiers volunteer to help Field Day
Soldiers from Fort Gordon took a break from their duties to help pupils at North Columbia Elementary School take their own break from schoolwork Friday.
Sgt. 1st Class Dennis Mason explains the rules of a Field Day activity to a group of pupils at North Columbia Elementary School in Appling. A group of soldiers from Fort Gordon volunteered to help supervise the activities during Friday's Field Day, a daylong event of outdoor games and activities that had a Summer Olympics theme.
Photo by Jim Blaylock
North Columbia Elementary held its annual Field Day on Friday. Field Day is a daylong event of outdoor games and activities for the pupils.
Volunteer soldiers from the fort, as part of the Military Troops to Teachers Program, aided teachers and parent volunteers in conducting the activities at the Appling school's playground.
"It's a nice break for us," said Army Sgt. 1st Class Ronald Ross as he helped retrieve Nerf javelins during the school's Summer Games-themed events.
"It's a way for us to give back to the community while getting a chance to play with the kids," he said.
Ross brought six Fort Gordon communications instructors from the Army and Navy to help with Field Day.
"Most of these guys don't have kids, or very young ones," he said. "I guess it kind of reminds them of what we're defending as members of the military."
Other games at Field Day included covered playground wagon races, volleyball using a 5-foot-wide air-filled canvas balloon, scooter board races, tricycle races and tug-of-war.
"Tug-of-war is the best," said Cliff Collins, an 8-year-old third-grader.
"It's all fun," said Cliff's classmate, Franklin Knox, 9. "We don't have to be in class."