The community in Southington came together Wednesday to celebrate and send off their own.
On Wednesday morning, sirens flashed and horns rang loud as students at Joseph A. Depalo Middle School gathered for a special farewell for some of the men and women from the National Guard and Southington police force who are being deployed.
Sixth, seventh and eighth graders made signs and wrote cards for the troops to read when they arrive at their destination.
"We just really wanted to make them feel comforted as they're away from their families and they are being deployed," Reilly Bard, a student who attends the middle school, said.
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Tague Shamleffer, a seventh-grader at the middle school thought it was important to attend the celebration.
"Even though they are being deployed they still are a member of our community and they still have given so much to our community and especially our country so we want them to know that we really do still care about them," Shamleffer said.
Chris Palmieri, principal of Joseph A. Depalo Middle School, wanted to make sure that not only the students had the opportunity to be present but that the community would also be able to take part in the celebration as well.
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"Seeing how much the troops appreciated what we were doing for them to show them our support for their efforts defending our country, having them go by with their cameras out recording, the greeting they got at our school, it just made it all worthwhile," Palmieri said.
