North Montgomery Middle School is providing Christmas cheer to two families of veterans through its Project Evergreen. Students presented Christmas trees to Nick Pirtle and the family of the late Jay Rice.
The project’s main purpose is to teach students how to honor and serve veterans which includes presenting a live evergreen tree to two recipients.
NMMS teacher Jodi Webster leads the project. She said both families were extremely appreciative for being remembered.
“The family of Jay Rice and Nick Pirtle were extremely touched by the students’ effort to honor them,” Webster said. “The presentation is special because it brings our veterans face-to-face with our students. Rice’s widow, Anita Rice, was there to accept the tree and there were tears.”
Webster said the presentation to the Rice family was emotional. Jay Rice succumbed to cancer in 2022. He served in the U.S. Marines Corps for 20 years and had earned the rank of Major.
While enlisted, Rice helped evacuate the Subic Navy Sea Base in the Philippines during the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo. He also served in Operation Desert Storm and in Afghanistan.
He was embedded with 15 Marines in the mountains of Afghanistan along the Pakistan border for 14 months amidst some heavy fire fights. He always said his proudest moment was being able to bring all 15 Marines home.
For his efforts he was awarded the Bronze Star and a Navy, Army and Marine Commendation Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal.
Rice returned home and coached swimming at Fountain Central High School. He is the uncle of North Montgomery School Resource Officer AJ Rice and school nurse Jessica Fruits. His sister in-law, Carla Rice, recently retired as a school nurse from Sommer Elementary School.
Pirtle is presently in the Indiana Air National Guard and has risen to the rank of Master Sergeant. He has been deployed overseas four times. He served in Iraq in 2008 and in Kuwait in 2013. He also served in Afghanistan in 2018 and Saudi Arabia in 2022.
Students started the project with a special drive-thru for Veterans Day. This year, more than 200 veterans had their images and service histories displayed. The displays were provided by Waynetown Improvement Committee, the Darlington Legion and a Montgomery County Community Foundation Grant.
Oak Hill Farm and the Stine family provided the two evergreen trees.
