As the daughter of a veteran, I grew up with a father who instilled in me the values of patriotism, service, and responsibility to others. Guided by these values, I was inspired to pursue opportunities that would enable me to give back to the community and to the country that I so deeply cherish.

Through my seventh annual ‘Cards for Vets’ campaign, a tradition inspired by a local educator’s effort, my office and I have had the honor of delivering hundreds of hand-crafted cards and letters of gratitude to local veterans. Inspired by a local educator, this tradition reminds me each year of my father’s lessons: gratitude has no age.

Every fall in the lead-up to Veterans Day, students across the 119th Assembly District sit down with paper, markers, crayons, and gluesticks, to thank someone they may never meet. Some are just learning to write, while others are preparing to enter adulthood. All of them take the time to think about what it means to serve, and to put that thought into words for a veteran. This year, through my 7th Annual Cards for Vets Initiative, hundreds of those messages were hand delivered to veteran organizations, senior centers, nursing homes, and American Legion and VFW posts across our community.

However, when we speak about instilling and passing on the values of service and of civic engagement, we often do so in a future context, as if it is something for later, when young people are older and more prepared. Yet, these students show us otherwise. A child who writes ‘thank you’ to a veteran is already learning that a community is something we all give to, and that those who sacrificed for it deserve to be remembered. It is never too early to begin learning that lesson, and it is never too early to spread gratitude.

That is why I believe that this work belongs in our schools, as civic engagement does not start and end at the ballot box when you turn 18. It begins instead with small acts of kindness and respect, practiced young enough that they become habits for life. The values my father taught me at home took root long before I was old enough to vote, and our teachers, principals, and superintendents understand this, and they make room for it in busy school days. I am deeply grateful to the school communities who took part this year: Utica City School District, Rome City School District, Whitesboro Central School District, New York Mills Union Free School District, Oriskany Central School District, Westmoreland Central School District, Holland Patent Central School District, the New York State School for the Deaf, Tilton School, Utica Academy of Science, and Notre Dame Elementary & Junior/Senior High.

To every student who took the time to create a card, I thank you. Your words mean more than you know to the veterans who read them. To our educators, I thank you for the powerful examples you set every day, teaching our young people that service and gratitude are values worth embodying early.

And to our veterans, may God bless you for your service and your sacrifice. Our community remembers, and I am proud to see our youngest generation learning to do the same.

Let us keep sharing these values with the next generation, not only on Veterans Day, but every day of the year.