Number of Participants: 100
Hours Donated: 1
Value of Time Served: $3,479
Event Type: Veterans & Military Families
Activity: Schools
School: Brewster High School
Date: November 10, 2025
Location:
Brewster Central School District
NY, USA
About:
This Veterans Day, the Brewster Central School District united students in a powerful act of gratitude and awareness through the districtwide Steps for Vets initiative — a movement that began with a single class assignment and grew into a community-wide tribute.
What started in Nicole Sweeney’s Personal Fitness classes as a 1,000-step weighted challenge inspired by the #Chad1000x workout quickly transformed into something much bigger. The workout honors U.S. Navy SEAL Chad Wilkinson, who served more than 20 years and tragically lost his life to the effects of blast-wave trauma. His story moved Sweeney deeply, and she saw an opportunity not only to honor veterans, but to teach students a vital message: even the strongest among us sometimes need help.
With the support of the Physical Education department, the idea expanded across the entire district. Over two days, students from Brewster High School, Wells Middle School, CVS Intermediate, and JFK Elementary took to the turf field to participate.
Older students climbed bleachers, returned to the field for laps, and completed 18 symbolic reps — push-ups, squats, or jumping jacks — representing the 18 veterans who lose their lives each day. Younger students participated in age-appropriate movements, all joining together in gratitude through physical action.
Throughout the event, staff paused the workouts to share real statistics about veterans and the invisible injuries many face. Students also signed the names of the veterans they know on a community banner that will be proudly displayed at Brewster High School.
PE staff members made donations to the Step Up Foundation, allowing the educational, physical, and emotional impact of the event to stretch even further.
Steps for Vets became far more than a workout — it became an opportunity for students to reflect, honor, and learn. And as they moved together across the field, they showed what gratitude in action truly looks like.
