About Living History Day

Living History Day was conceptualized by Ken Buckles, a Milwaukie High School (MHS) teacher and alumni, as a unique way to educate students about the true meaning behind Veteran’s Day. The first Living History Day was held at MHS in 1996 and continues to grow each November.

The annual Living History Day at MHS is something that students, teachers, and Veterans all look forward to each year. Students decorate hallways and classrooms, fundraise, and volunteer for Remembering America’s Heroes year-round. Some teachers base their lesson plans on the experiences of the Veterans or guests that come into their classrooms to speak. The Veterans look forward to sharing their first-hand stories with students and seeing old friends; some even say it is a time of personal healing.

There are many components to Living History Day, including the Gold Star Assembly, the Assembly of Honor, the Veterans Luncheon, and an extensive indoor and outdoor museum with military memorabilia, vehicles, and artwork. Please visit the Videos section to view a highlight video from the 2007 MHS Living History Day.

Shortly after Remembering America’s Heroes became a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 2002, we began taking Living History Day on the road to other schools throughout the state of Oregon. Redmond High School, Dayton High School, Nestucca Valley Middle School, and Pendleton High School have all hosted their own unique Living History Day program. Local schools who have hosted assemblies include Jesuit High School, Oregon City High School, LaSalle High School, and Barlow High School.

Assembly of Honor

This event was held in the Milwaukie High School Gym from 1996 to 1999. Veterans marched in to the gym by war and branch to a standing-room-only student body and a rousing standing ovation. It was a very emotionally powerful experience for the Veterans, as most openly wept. For many, it was the first time they had ever been honored, recognized and thanked for their sacrifices. The honored Veterans have always included four WWI Veterans, (two are now deceased), Veterans from WWII, Korean War, The Vietnam War, The Cold War, and other conflicts, including the Persian Gulf Wars and conflicts. The students then performed a variety of musical, comedy, and dance routines from the 40s, 50s, and 60s. This was our way of saying "thank you" to all the Veterans.

The event's popularity and recognition had grown so immensely that we had outgrown our facility at the high school. We decided that this was too moving an experience to keep to ourselves, so we decided to share it with the Portland, OR community. We rented the Memorial Coliseum (capacity 12,000), recruited other high schools and formed a choir of over 400 students, a high school honor band of 150 students and included them in our show. Over 3,000 Veterans and their spouses were honored, tripling the number from our high school gym.

In 2001, it was again moved to the Rose Garden Arena (capacity 22,000) as the attendance doubled. The Veterans, Assembly of Honor Show now involved approximately 30 Portland-area high schools in choir, band, student ushers, and performers. Approximately 2,000 high school students were involved with this show. The choir had grown to approximately 900, the high school honor band to 255, a high school orchestra and community college jazz band, dozens of student performers, with the remaining students working as ushers escorting Veterans from the parking lots to their seats. This two-hour program salutes Veterans, including current service men and women. Among those special guests attending previous year's program were: Ross Perot, Navy, Oregon's own Katie Harmon, Miss America, and Bob Bush, Medal of Honor recipient.

Because these events have become so popular, it was necessary to form a non-profit corporation. Our office is still located at Milwaukie High School and still involves high school students. We chose our name based on the fact that the students believe that the true heroes throughout history have been our Veterans.

Veterans and Veteran Organizations have donated generously to Living History Day and Assembly of Honor Show since 1996. In fact, were it not for Veteran-related donations, our programs could not exist today.

It is absolutely amazing that these special individuals served their country, made incredible sacrifices decades ago and still give their time and money today so that high school students can learn and understand from their experiences, honor them and remember the ones that made the ultimate sacrifice and never came home.

Gold Star Assembly

The Gold Star Assembly is a Milwaukie High School (MHS) tradition that has become part of Living History Day. 2007 marked the 50th anniversary of this moving, candlelit ceremony honoring the 50 MHS alumni and one MHS teacher who died serving our country. Current students of MHS hold a candle for each of the honorees. As each name is read, one candle is extinguished. The service and supreme sacrifice of these men will never be forgotten.