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Students at Harns Marsh Middle School in Lehigh Acres learned important lessons today from an active duty soldier.<\/p>\nStudents at Harns Marsh Middle School in Lehigh Acres learned important lessons today from an active duty soldier.<\/p>\n
Staff Sergeant Matthew Garcia spoke to the class of seventh graders form his base stationed in Kandahar, Afghanistan.<\/p>\n
The students in the class were able to ask the soldier questions about his job and what it\u2019s like being over seas.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we\u2019re not training we\u2019re doing some sort of academic training,\u201d said SSG Garcia, \u201cwhich consists of military-civilian education.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lindsey Weiss teaches the class and organized the Skype session with the staff sergeant through the Soldier\u2019s Angels foundation.<\/p>\n
Weiss said before seeing Garcia face-to-face the class wrote him six letters \u2013 and they were pretty surprised when they got one back.<\/p>\n
The letters weren\u2019t only to thank the soldier for his service, but also to ask some tough questions like: \u2018What\u2019s the hardest thing he had to deal with as a seventh grader?\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cHe talks about regular things ya know\u2026sports, his family, his son, his wife,\u201d said Weiss showing me the letters the class got back.<\/p>\n
Weiss says she was shocked when the class received the letters, but she was even more surprised when they were able to see SSG Garcia face-to-face.<\/p>\n
\u201cI couldn\u2019t believe it. He said \u2018Hi Ms. Weiss, this is Staff Sergeant Garcia, and I said are you kidding?\u2019”<\/p>\n
The kids were just excited to hear from him, even learning some important lessons along the way.<\/p>\n
\u201cHaving the stuff that you have – to be happy about it,\u201d said Albert Garcia, a seventh grader, \u201cand not seeing what other people have and what you don’t have.”<\/p>\n
That was just one of several important messages the staff sergeant had for the class.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the important thing to do is not look to your left, to your right…but to be responsible for your own actions,\u201d said SSG Garcia.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo me, that’s what I want for my students,\u201d said Weiss. \u201cI always want them to be the best them they can be.\u201d<\/p>\n
Staff Sergeant Garcia has severed multiple tours and is now entering into his eighth year of service.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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