Local 9-11 Observance Is Special To One Family
It was a great morning at Washington Park Elementary School the morning of 9-11. In America we use this day to reflect and remember what happened 12 years ago at the World Trade Centers in New York where many Americans lost their lives, and many heroes emerged uniting a great Nation.
On the local front, we here in Georgia are thousands of miles away from Ground Zero, but that doesn’t stop us from observing the day right here in Monticello.
On the morning of 9-11 Katie Richter, a fourth grader at Washington Park was surprised with a flag raising ceremony at the school. The ceremony was a surprise, and the biggest surprise of all was the flag that was raised and then lowered to half mast was from her father, LCDR Matt Richter that is currently stationed in Farah, Afghanistan.
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Katie and her family joined members of the American Legion Color Guard at the school to raise the flag in his honor and in memory of those who lost their lives in the military and New York.
While the flag was being raised, (color guard daughter, Hope) played the Star Spangled Banner on the trumpet and other students from Washington Park were ushered out to witness the ceremonious occasion.
After the ceremony, a teary eyed Mrs. Richter said “I am so thankful and appreciative of you all letting us do this. It’s for everyone here and serving overseas as a reminder that we are free. And I am just so thankful.”
It all began at the beginning of school, just over a month ago, when the students were asked to bring in three things that said a little bit about themselves. One of the items that Katie brought in was a pillow case that belonged to her dad, and she broke down into tears when telling the class and teacher about him.
When learning about the incident, Shawne Holder and Chad Sanders, Principal and Assistant Principal, set out to contact the family to see if there was something special that they could do to help Katie honor her daddy.
Mr. Sanders and Tonya Richter (wife and mother) got together, and a flag was flown from Matt Richter, in Afghanistan, to be raised at Washington Park. Mrs. Richter presented both Mr. Sanders and Mrs. Holder with a certificate stating that the flag was flown as a unit flag in Afghanistan from LCDR Matt Richter. He thanked the school for allowing the flag to be flown. The document stated that the flag was transported into the states on July 4th, 2013. The document included a photo of LDCR Richter’s team and signatures from himself and his commanding officer.
After the document was presented, Mr. Sanders and Ms. Holder allowed Katie to paint their fingernails red, white, and blue. Mr. Sanders said that Katie told him that her daddy used to let her do that to him.
Mr. Richter is an Executive Officer and Lieutenant Commander over the Provincial Reconstruction Team based in Farah, Afghanistan. His family, including his wife, Tonya; older son Brett, younger son, Nicky and Katie reside in Monticello.
