Third-grade class surprised by visit from soldier pen pal

Students in Linda Smith's third-grade class at Penn Hebron Academy were surprised last week by a visit from the pen pal in Iraq they had been corresponding with for nearly a year.

"The children really helped to make my time in Iraq special," said Chief Warrant Officer Edward Luzadder, a logistics officer for a field artillery battalion stationed with the U.S. Army near An Nasiriyah.

Luzadder, of Huntington, W.Va., and veteran of the first Gulf War, told the children his service would have been much more difficult without "support from home, and support from you." He plans retire in September after a 21-year Army career.

The students began the year-long correspondence project with the battalion when they helped to organize and send approximately 520 donated Christmas and Hanukkah cards, stockings, wreaths, and packages of snacks before the holiday season.

"We sent food and things to remind them of home in the United States," said Anna Marie Kun, 9.

Smith contacted Luzadder and his battalion at the beginning of the school year through Operation Troop Appreciation, a Pittsburgh-based organization that sends donated clothing, comfort items, phone cards, and food supplies to soldiers overseas..

In addition to writing letters and e-mails with the students, Smith worked the pen-pal relationship into daily vocabulary, geography, and current events lessons.

Penn Hebron Academy also held a schoolwide Sit-ups for Soldiers program, where patriotic songs were played over the intercom and children exercised to "remember soldiers and the sacrifices they've made for us," Smith said.

"This has come full circle for these kids," Smith said. "Before he visited, he was a name for all of us, and now we have a face."

Luzadder began his visit Friday with a slide-show presentation titled "My Summer Vacation" -- photographs documenting his arrival to departure from Iraq -- followed by a question-and-answer session called "Stump the Soldier."

The questions ranged from the basic, such as 9-year-old Briana Kennedy's question, "Were you allowed to take your jacket off?" to 9-year-old Maurice Epp's question, "Who started the war?"

Luzadder drew gasps from the students when he told them temperatures in Iraq sometimes climbed to well above 130 degrees. He also explained daily Army life, such as the parts of his uniform, the food soldiers eat, recreation, and the sleeping arrangements.

"The fact that students from another state took an interest made it all the more special," said Luzadder, who is a member of the West Virginia Army National Guard.

Even though Luzadder has returned from Iraq, Smith's students will continue to communicate with soldiers in Iraq through Captain Anthony Caldarelli of Edinboro, who is currently stationed in Balad Airbase in Northern Iraq.

For more information or to donate items to send overseas, contact Linda Smith at 412-242-7770.