{"id":28905,"date":"2023-09-25T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-09-25T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=28905"},"modified":"2023-09-26T06:42:47","modified_gmt":"2023-09-26T06:42:47","slug":"afnorth-school-visits-performs-at-invictus-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=28905","title":{"rendered":"AFNorth school visits, performs at Invictus Games"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Twelfth grader A\u2019Zya Cowans (second from the left) from AFNorth International School, Brunssum, the Netherlands poses in a group with Prince Harry and Meghan, Dutchess of Sussex, at the Invictus Games in D\u00fcsseldorf, Germany Sept. 14. The fifth through 12th grade students from the school travelled to the games to watch wounded service members and veterans contend in modified athletic competitions. Some got the chance to meet Harry, the founder, and Meghan. (Courtesy photo)
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BRUNSSUM, Netherlands \u2014 The AFNorth International School in Brunssum bussed fifth through 12th grade students to D\u00fcsseldorf, Germany, to experience the competition of wounded service members and veterans during the sixth edition of the Invictus Games on Sept. 14.<\/p>\n

Students watched international competitors contend in a multitude of sports despite health challenges incurred from their military time serving their country.<\/p>\n

Held for the first time in Germany, the opportunity also afforded a chance for the music students to perform for the first time this school year and for other students to meet Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, the Dutchess of Sussex.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t normally perform this early in the school year,\u201d said Shelley Brobst, music director at AFNorth U.S. Middle\/High School, adding that they only had three weeks to prepare. \u201cIt was a lot of pressure for the students to get music and instruments and get ready to go [to the Invictus Games], but they did quite amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alaina Smith performed at the Invictus Village with the school choir.<\/p>\n

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\n (Right to left) Seventh graders Aiden Nix and Mia Wareham and eighth grader Lucas Reyes play their trumpets with the AFNorth U.S. Middle\/High School band at the 2023 Invictus Games in D\u00fcsseldorf, Germany, Sept. 14. The school\u2019s music students, from Brunssum, the Netherlands, were invited to play at Invictus Village for the day to celebrate the friendly competition between wounded service members and veterans who contended in modified athletic events from Sept. 9 to 16. (Photo by Erie ten Doesschate)
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\u201cIt was a really cool experience,\u201d said Smith, a seventh grader. \u201cI was excited because I\u2019d just done my first performance in front of so many people!\u201d<\/p>\n

The school rock band, composed of five different nationalities, also performed.<\/p>\n

Brobst explained that the invitation for the rock band, the choir and the wind band to play at the Invictus Games was particularly special because of their connection to the armed forces, and that public performances outside of school are rare for the students.<\/p>\n

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\n Eighth grader Daniel Collett throws a curling stone as teacher chaperone Daniel Wilson, from AFNorth U.S. Middle\/High school watches the game at Invictus Village in D\u00fcsseldorf, Germany, Sept. 14. The school, from Brunssum, the Netherlands, took fifth through 12th grade students to the games to watch wounded service members and veterans contend in modified athletic competitions. (Photo by Erie ten Doesschate)
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\u201cAll of the Invictus Games sports competitors have a military background and our students at AFNorth have a military connection,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was awesome. It was a great experience for our children.\u201d<\/p>\n

The students and staff who weren\u2019t performing had a chance to watch competitions such as volleyball, where the competitors sat on the floor, and table tennis with athletes in wheelchairs.<\/p>\n

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\n The Merkur Spiel-Arena in D\u00fcsseldorf, Germany, hosted the 2023 Invictus Games from Sept. 9 to 16. AFNorth International School, Brunssum, the Netherlands took fifth through 12th grade students to the games Sept. 14 to watch wounded service members and veterans contend in modified athletic competitions. Some got the chance to meet Prince Harry, the founder, and Meghan, Dutchess of Sussex, and others were invited to perform musical compositions in the Invictus Village. (Photo by Erie ten Doesschate)
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\u201cI just loved the atmosphere in the crowd, because everyone was cheering for their team,\u201d said 12th grader A\u2019Zya Cowans.<\/p>\n

Each sporting event added modifications to accommodate disabilities, and spectators could see first-hand the agility of athletes despite their physical or mental challenges.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was actually surprised,\u201d said Cowans. \u201cThey were getting around really well!\u201d<\/p>\n

Select visitors also got the chance to meet the founder of the Invictus Games, Harry, at the end of the day.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe highlight of my day was meeting Prince Harry and Meghan,\u201d said Cowans. \u201cI never thought that I would meet them!\u201d<\/p>\n

Inspired by the 2013 Warrior Games in the U.S., Harry saw the power competition had in the healing process of wounded service members. The following year, the inaugural Invictus Games was held in London.<\/p>\n

Harry\u2019s goal, according to the British Royal Family’s website<\/a>, was to recognize the sacrifice of military members through inclusive sporting competitions. He plans to continue the tradition for the foreseeable future.<\/p>\n

Cowans expressed her respect for the wounded service members and veterans.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy overall impression is that even though something bad might happen in your life in the past it doesn\u2019t mean that you can stop trying or stop fighting,\u201d said Cowans. \u201cYou can still do what you love.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Invictus Games are scheduled to take place again in 2025 in the Canadian province of Vancouver, British Columbia.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Twelfth grader A\u2019Zya Cowans (second from the left) from AFNorth International School, Brunssum, the Netherlands poses in a group with Prince Harry and Meghan, Dutchess of Sussex, at the Invictus Games in D\u00fcsseldorf, Germany Sept. 14. The fifth through 12th grade students from the school travelled to the games to watch wounded service members and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":28907,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28905","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28905","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28905"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28905\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28912,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28905\/revisions\/28912"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/28907"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28905"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28905"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28905"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}