By By ERIKA PICKLES / Niles Daily Star
NILES – The question, "who in our history has the most influence on you," is almost impossible to answer. So many different names come to mind for so many different reasons – George Washington, Rosa Parks, Benjamin Franklin, Susan B. Anthony – just to name a few. So many have helped shape this country and with that, their legacy will live on forever.
This week, the Daily Star put students to the test. We asked several elementary students who in history is a great role model, who do you look up to and who helped shape our country into what it is today.
Kira Holloway, 9, and Bailey Allen, 9, of Niles both agreed that George Washington was a great leader.
"He was the first president and he was a great person to follow because he did a lot of good things for our country," Allen said.
Holloway said she thinks he did a good job.
Anna Lapham, 9, and Sara Goskie, 11, of Niles both said they think Abraham Lincoln is a very positive influence.
"He helped set the slaves free and gave our country freedom," Lapham said. "He should be a positive influence on all presidents," Goskie added.
Lexie Gast, 9, of Niles said Teddy Roosevelt is someone she looks up to because "I think he was a good president and all presidents should be good role models and he was one because he did good things.
Ceili, Morgan and Emily Rockhill were all reenactors for the Education Day program. Their grandparents are the treasurers of Support The Fort and they admitted they love learning about history and being able to be a part of it.
"I think everyone in our history should be looked up to because they helped form our country and made it what it is today," Ceili, 14, said. All three girls reenacted children from the early 18th century and demonstrate how children lived and what kind of toys they played with.
"It's interesting to know what people did back then and how they lived their lives. The people from the 18th century invented new things to make our lives better, just like everyone else from our history has done," Morgan, 9, said.
Emily said she enjoys being a reenactor because it's fun and it's an adventure.
"I never stop learning about our history and the people involved with it. Just when I thought I heard everything, I meet new people who have new stories about something great someone from our history did. everyone should be looked up to. People who lived in these times had to do a lot more just to survive," Emily, 12, said.
Drew Berens, 12, said everyone should known the importance of local history and the people who not only helped shaped the country, but our area as well.
"Niles has a very rich history and it's important for kids to know who used to live here and how important they are to where we have come today," he said.