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War Veterans Visit a South Jersey School With Memories and Mementos

By Paul Kurtz

RUNNEMEDE, N.J. (CBS) -- With the arrival of Veterans Day next Monday, students at Triton Regional High School in Runnemede today continued their annual tradition of honoring those who served.

At a daylong event, invited war veterans shared memories of battle and mementos brought back from far-off lands.

"We show them the weapons we used, the equipment we used," says Carl Litizia, a veteran of the Korean War (far right in photo, wearing blue jacket).  "You'd be surprised, some of these students have never seen a firearm, and we try to teach them gun safety and things like that."

For students it was chance to get a close-up look and say thank you.

"It's really nice seeing all the veterans coming here and sharing their stories," said one student.  "It (shows) a great deal of respect for everything they've done for our country."

"I think it's pretty cool what our grandfathers and stuff did in the war," said another.

This meet-and-greet in the school library was the brainchild five years ago of Triton history teacher Candace Vroman.

"In the classroom, lecturing to them and reading to them, those are all important skills," she says, "but they really appreciate the hands-on experience."

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