A programming day. Few things strike dread into the hearts of students more than the announcement that instead of classes, we have to endure an entire day of guest speakers and community service. I am no different. Past experience has taught me to not look forward to programming days, and I didn’t think I would make it through another presentation on sexting or cyberbullying.
My worst fears were confirmed when we were told to report to the auditorium for a speaker. Nobody had any idea who the speaker was (probably not a good sign), and Lissa Testa, the counselor introducing the guest speaker, started off the presentation by thanking seniors for actually showing up to school today (definitely not a good sign).
However, this morning’s speaker was by far the best presentation I have ever heard, in twelve years of attending the Lovejoy school district. Eric Maddox, an interrogator for the Army, told us of his experiences in Iraq, and how he spearheaded the operation that led to the capture of Saddam Hussein.
The presentation, though it was 45 minutes long, flew by as he described how his four month long manhunt in Iraq led him to discover the location of and send a team to capture Hussein. In addition to having a fascinating story to tell, Maddox was an excellent speaker. He was relaxed and casual, and was much funnier than I would expect a trained army interrogator to be.
While the topic of his speech was rather random for a programming/community service day at a high school, it was a welcome change from the usual assembly discussing senior projects or how to stop bullying. As seniors in high school, it was really interesting and eye opening to hear about a career path that I had never considered in detail. Also, it will be interesting to see the movie coming out in 2014 portraying Maddox’s operation after hearing him give a first hand account of it. The movie is titled Mission: Blacklist, and Maddox will be portrayed by Robert Pattinson.
All in all, the school’s administration nailed it on this one. I was interested through the whole presentation, and it was an awesome experience. Regardless of how the rest of the day went, seniors who missed school today for college visits, doctor’s appointments, surprise bouts of illness, or those who were too lazy to even make an excuse, missed out on hearing a once-in-a-lifetime speaker.
