Red, White and Blue Club hosts Veterans Day Guests
November 15, 2023
Shorecrest Upper School’s Red, White and Blue Club hosted a Veteran's Day Ceremony last week in the Janet Root Theatre. Lieutenant Colonel Steve Ferenzi, a Shorecrest parent, and his wife, Army pilot Lt. Col. Elizabeth Eaton-Ferenzi, joined the Upper School student body with their three Chargers - Annalise ‘30, Mariella ‘32 and Tony ‘34.
Addison Cohoon ‘25, Co-President of the Club, introduced Lt. Col. Ferenzi, a Strategist for U.S. Special Operations Command Central. His higher education includes a Master of International Affairs (with a concentration in International Security Policy and regional focus on the Middle East and Central Asia) from Columbia University’s School of International & Public Affairs, and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Lehigh University. Ferenzi deployed to Afghanistan in 2005 and 2012, Iraq in 2006 and 2007, Tajikistan in 2010, and Turkey in 2016. He has also conducted Contemporary Battlefield Assessments in Sri Lanka (2016) and Georgia (2017) with West Point’s Modern War Institute to study those countries’ experiences with counterinsurgency against the Tamil Tigers and conflict with Russia. As an expert in military strategy, Ferenzi has published numerous articles and has contributed to reports from the Modern War Institute and West Point’s Combating Terrorism Center.
Ferenzi shared his reflections on Veterans Day as a day to honor our Armed Forces, who enable the safety of our nation and uphold democracy. He also noted the comparison between Shorecrest's Core Values and military values.
“We are extremely fortunate that our Shorecrest leaders are aligning values with action,” he expressed. “The critical thinking skills you learn at Shorecrest keep you vigilant. Shorecrest inspires and cultivates service, and students can serve a broad community like veterans have.”
He also set forth a challenge for the teens: “This Veterans Day reach out to a veteran you know and show them the gratitude they deserve. Then reflect on the service of our veterans and ask yourself if you are working to help others. ”
To close the event Reese Klingel ‘25, Co-President of the Club, thanked the Ferenzi family for sharing, and asked attendees to stand while Ethan Bekurs ‘24 played Taps.
