Colorado Students Deliver Hundreds of Cards to 101-Year-Old WWII and Korean War Veteran After Injuries
Students from Merritt Academy in Woodland Park, Colorado, delivered over 250 get-well cards to Ed Beck, a 101-year-old veteran of World War II and the Korean War. Beck recently suffered serious injuries from two falls, including seven cracked ribs, a cracked elbow, a cracked hip, and a mild heart attack. Mark Schaefer, a longtime friend of Beck and a teacher at Merritt Academy, initiated the card-writing campaign with a coworker. Students from kindergarten through 12th grade participated, with older students personally delivering the cards to Beck's home in Southeast Colorado Springs. Beck, who joined the Army in 1944 at age 18, fought in the Battle of the Bulge, was a prisoner of war, and later served in Korea, helping push North Koreans back to the Chinese border. The cards have significantly uplifted Beck and sparked conversations about history among the students, who had the opportunity to meet a primary source of historical events. 
