The students in Stella Guiry’s second grade at Stewart School adopted a Marine platoon this year. The platoon is led by Captain Christopher Meyers, U.S.M.C., who is a cousin of Ryan Eschmann, a second grader in Mrs. Guiry’s class.

Early in the fall, second graders wrote letters of thanks and encouragement to this platoon in Iraq. For Thanksgiving the class asked their fourth-grade Literacy Book Buddies to join them in writing Thanksgiving rhyming couplets for the Marines.

The second graders are looking forward to sending holiday cards to the Marines to make their season a little more joyful.