Teachers are heroes to many of their students. And some teachers are heroes in more ways than one.

On Monday, to mark Veterans Day, Penn-Kidder Campus students heard from three of their own teachers who are veterans.

They shared some of their experiences in the military and talked about what Veterans Day means to them.

“I didn’t know that about my teachers. It’s pretty cool,” said eighth-grader Salvatore Capria.

Ralph Clay Jr. and Jen Holder, two teachers who served in the Navy, were joined by band director Eric Flowers, an Army veteran.

The students listened intently and cheered loudly for their stories about their military service. And each grade sang a patriotic song to show their gratitude.

Holder used pictures to tell the students about her training and deployment in Iraq.

She explained some of the uniforms and insignia, and how if you failed to call a bathroom a “head” in the Navy, you would be punished with push-ups.

While in Iraq, she treated soldiers and Iraqi women who needed health care. She said that being a veteran means loving your country enough to sacrifice your life, have faith in God and country, and to have honor in everything you do and say.

“What it means to be a veteran is to take pride in your service to your country, and it means to be proud that you stood for something,” she said.

Holder gained lifelong friends in the military, and met her husband. Their daughter, Sarah, is a seventh-grader at Penn Kidder. She said that her pride in her mom for serving and sharing her story couldn’t be greater.

“It means that she’s brave and she’s strong and she won’t let anybody stand in her way,” Sarah Holder said.

Ralph Clay Jr. also served in the Navy, and like Holder, was deployed to the Middle East instead of a ship. He served in Afghanistan. He enlisted because of 9/11, knowing that it would bother him later in life if he didn’t do something in response.

“I’m very proud of my service to our country, but I only wish now I could have done more,” he said.

Clay implored the students to think of the meaning when they recite the pledge to the flag. He told them they should stand tall and say it with pride, because there are millions of people around the world who wish they were fortunate enough to grow up in the United States.

“You’re here today in a great school with great teachers, and you can become anything you want to. You have freedom, and the reason for that is our veterans,” Clay said.

Flowers served in Operation Desert Shield. When he returned, he joined an Army band. He still serves in that band today, after taking some time off, and he is its commander. He now has 19 years total of military service.

Flowers said that veterans can be anyone — a neighbor, a first responder, a teacher, and more. He said that while Veterans Day is just one day, veterans deserve recognition year-round.

“While Hollywood and professional athletes seek fame and fortune, real heroes quietly go about their lives having served so we have the freedom to work, live, play and worship without fear,” he said.

The day inspired pride in their fellow teachers as well — perhaps none more than seventh-grade teacher Nancy Fields. Her two sons are graduates of the Naval and Coast Guard academies as well as Jim Thorpe Area High School.

Fields said that she enjoyed seeing the patriotism and togetherness that the assembly provided.

“I love seeing their pride. Kids hear a lot of negativity about our country. It’s inspiring to put all that aside and celebrate together,” she said.