Retired Army Master Sgt. Allen James Lynch delivered a keynote speech to Naperville Central seniors in the auditorium on Veterans Day. Other Central students watched a livestream of the Nov. 11 assembly from their SOAR homerooms.
Lynch received the Medal of Honor — the U.S. Armed Forces’ highest military decoration — in recognition of his service in the Vietnam War, where he exposed himself to enemy fire in order to administer CPR to three injured soldiers. His speech at Central focused on resilience, taking on difficult tasks and learning from failure.
“Don’t take the easy way out,” Lynch said in an interview. “It’s going to turn you into a better person.”
This year’s Veterans Day also included a number of new programming elements. The assembly included a video created by Jason Lee, Class of 2020, to recognize attendees for their service. Central’s Veterans Club also set up 60 American flags around Central on loan to the school by the Naperville Park District.
“We’re going to try to do new and different things going forward,” Veterans Club co-sponsor Mike Bochenski said. “Some of those things will be great and we’ll keep them, and some of them won’t. I think [the] video is excellent, and so we may add or edit as we go along to keep it relevant through the years, but I want that to be part of what we’re going to do.”
More than 25 veterans were in attendance at the assembly, the most in Central history according to Bochenski. The veterans in attendance were also invited to breakfast and lunch ceremonies hosted by Veterans Club.
The assembly still continued traditional programming elements. Wind ensemble and members of choir performed the official songs of each military branch and members of Central’s choir performed the national anthem.
“I feel a lot of my emotions through music and I hope the veterans and the audience were able to too,” sophomore clarinet player Abigail Hennessy said.
Veterans Club members were also responsible for introducing the different branches of the military and honoring the attendees who served in them.
“I wanted it to be both informative and impactful,” Bochenski said. “These [veterans] who have served have something to share with us, and that’s what I wanted it to be, that’s why we invited Mr. Lynch. I thought his message of resilience, doing hard work [and] overcoming obstacles is something we all need to hear, student and staff.”
Lynch spoke about personal experiences he’s had in and after military service, many of which include the intensity of his drill sergeant.
“When people start yelling and screaming, know that it ain’t personal,” Lynch said in an interview. “It’s just a way to get you to do what you need to do to stay alive in battle.”
Lynch published “Zero to Hero: From Bullied Kid to Warrior” in 2019. The autobiography reflects on his life and how he overcame bullying on Chicago’s South Side.
“The way you live your life always comes back to bite you, or to make things better,” Lynch said in an interview.
Veterans Club donated $1,000 to the Allen J Lynch Foundation at the end of the assembly.