Students welcome soldier to classroom

Local military man serving in Iraq drops in on class that corresponds with him Franklin — Second-graders at Franklin Borough School wrote letters and made cards for Sgt. Joseph Cahill, from Ogdensburg, who is stationed in Camp Bucca, Iraq. The cards were brightly decorated and the letters contained questions such as: How hot is it in Iraq? What do you do in your time off? What do you do in Iraq? Several weeks after the letters were written, the students and their teacher, Judy Pierce, were surprised to receive a letter postmarked, “Iraq.” Sgt. Cahill answered all of the students’ questions. He told them that temperatures can rise over 120 degrees in Iraq; that the men and women in uniform try to play different sports in their free time, which isn’t too often; and he explained that part of his mission is to make sure that the Iraqi people understand that the United States is there to help rebuild their country. To the children’s delight, Sgt. Cahill made a surprise visit to their classroom fully dressed in his Army fatigues recently. Everyone had a piece of “Welcome Home” cake and some juice. Sgt. Cahill has recently returned to Iraq and plans to continue corresponding with Judy Pierce’s class. Sgt. Cahill attended Ogdensburg Elementary School and graduated from Wallkill Valley Regional High School.