EAST MANATEE -- Herb Tschappat never had been “coined” and quickly choked up with emotion.
“Coining” is when an active duty soldier or a veteran is presented a token of gratitude, usually a half-dollar-size metal coin and most often during a quick encounter with a stranger, in honor of their military service.
“It was a thrill,” said Tschappat, a retired Manatee school administrator and U.S. Army Vietnam veteran, moments after he received a Grateful American Coin in front of more than 100 Braden River Elementary School third graders. “It felt like someone graders. “It felt like someone saying thanks.”
Tschappat was lured to Braden River Elementary off State Road 70 Tuesday by a request to read to a third grade class.
What he didn’t know was that he and a handful of other soldiers and veterans were part of a Braden River third grade Global Outreach project.
Not only are the children learning facts about Iraq and Afghanistan, two places were American are fighting, but they have been learning the five branches of the military, which are stated on the coins and how to show appreciation for something done on their behalf.
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