Kaleb Mummert makes his American flag fly Tuesday at the Christian School of York. The school had a program to mark Veterans Day, which is today. (DAILY RECORD / SUNDAY NEWS -- BIL BOWDEN )
Six-year-old Isabella Perez got wide-eyed while she looked up to watch members of the William Penn JROTC Color Guard march by her and several other first-graders.

Isabella and hundreds of students, faculty and community members were at a Veterans Day program at Christian School of York in Manchester Township on Tuesday.

The event honored veterans and active military personnel.

The gathering also served as a reminder that U.S. military leaders face difficult decisions regarding conflicts overseas, said Kevin Hofer, the school's headmaster, during a prayer to open the ceremony.

Much of the event was dedicated to Joe Flanders, a 28-year U.S. Army veteran who died recently after a sudden illness. Some folks in the audience were teary when his wife, Allison Flanders -- a CSY graduate, teacher and former sports coach -- and the couple's sons, Benjamin, 17, Aaron, 15, and Nathan, 12, received gifts from students and soldiers based at Fort Indiantown Gap.

"Joe had a very rich history in the military," U.S. Army Major Richard Howett said, and he thanked the Flanders family for allowing Joe Flanders to serve the country.

According to his obituary, Joe Flanders worked for the Pennsylvania Army National Guard as a simulations officer in the Department of Plans and Training at the Training Center at Fort Indiantown Gap.

"Since my husband's passing, (his fellow soldiers) were right there . . . helping us through it," Allison Flanders said. "Joe . . . would be very proud of this country, the soldiers, their dedication, their duty."

Tuesday's program also included patriotic songs, speeches and dances performed by CSY students.

U.S. Army veteran Clifton Dixon and his wife, Elda, of West Manchester Township, said they were proud and got teary when their grandson, Luke Dixon, a 12-year-old seventh-grader at the school, played Taps on the trumpet.

Luke said he was pleased to play the song well.

"It was really an honor knowing that that (song) represents all of the veterans here today," Luke said.