One book I read every year with my children’s literature course is Eve Bunting’s The Wall. But I have never experienced the book the way I did last week during an Authors Specialist Knowledge (ASK) Program with Gordy Bourland who fulfilled a specialist role to answer fifth-grade students’ questions about his experiences in the Vietnam War.
The students read Eve Bunting’s picture book illustrated by Ronald Himler that details a young boy, with his father’s help, looking for his grandfather’s name on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial located in Washington D.C. The students created a list of interview questions they asked Mr. Bourland during the ASK Program.
Mr. Bourland answered each question with such honesty and openness. His memories impacted all of us listening as he shared details of being drafted, joining the Army, training to become a soldier and eventually a sergeant, and fighting in the war. All of our emotions, Gordy’s included, bubbled to the surface.
Even though Mr. Bourland has been doing ASK Programs for the last two decades, this past week he was asked a new question: How did the GI Bill help you with your education? He stated, “I’ve never been asked that. That was one of the advantages that we got at the time. When I came out I not only finished my college but got my Master’s Degree with my GI bill.” He used those degrees to teach secondary science for 30 years where he impacted countless students. His life has been an inspiration for so many students like those who participated in last week’s ASK Program.
I feel blessed to have had this experience, and even more blessed to post this on Memorial Day, a day when we must remember those who have fought for our country. Humbly and too simply, I say thank you to those who have fought, are fighting, and will fight within our military’s armed forces. Today we celebrate, but every day we must remember those soldiers who make such sacrifices, especially those who lose their lives fighting wars.