The students of Springville Middle School have been taking field trips to Washington D.C. every other year for over 15 years. This years trip hosted 155 students, teachers, chaperones and parents for a six day tour. Jim Mulvihill Tours has guided Springville on its trips for over 15 years. The students visited Jamestown, Williamsburg, Yorktown and Mount Vernon on the first few days of their trip. The following days they visited major attractions inside Washington D.C., including the National Archives, The U.S. Capitol Building, The National Cathedral, Library of Congress, The White House and Smithsonian Museums.

The students also toured various Memorials including the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, Vietnam War Memorial, Korean War Memorial, World War II Memorial, Roosevelt Memorial, Air Force Memorial, Pentagon Memorial, Lincoln Memorial and Jefferson Memorial.

After months of planning and scheduling, the students of Springville Middle School were selected to participate in the Changing of the Guard Ceremony by presenting a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The wreath was presented during the ceremony after “Taps” was played by the Army trumpeter.

Four student Representatives, Olivia Hobbs, Lauren Isley, Collin Lockhart and Taylor “Dewey” Scott were selected to present the wreath. Eighth grade student, Olivia Hobbs, one of the representatives of Springville Middle School said, “It was such a great honor and I will remember this for the rest of my life.”

Lockhart states, “It was an honor to represent my school and I learned a lot from the experience.”

Some of the parents and chaperones were emotional during the somber ceremony to honor our nation’s fallen soldiers. The students also paid respects to Springville native, Jerry E. Dorough, at the Vietnam Memorial Wall. Dorough was an Army Specialists killed in action on November 19, 1968 in the Tay Ninh province of Vietnam.

The buses became traveling classrooms with tour guides Pat and Casey Mulvihill giving a constant flow of facts, information and stories about the areas. Springville Middle School did an outstanding job of representing our area and learning about our nation, history, government and freedoms.