Veterans Day means a lot of different things to a lot of people. As Americans, we pay tribute to the men and women who served in the armed forces. If you happen to have a personal connection, like our 6th grade teacher Peter Ent, the meaning of Veteran’s Day hits even closer to home.  

He pays tribute to multiple generations of family that served in the Military. His Grandfather served in World War 1 and both his Father and Uncle served in World War 2. “To me, Veteran’s Day is not really a Holiday, it is more of a day of remembrance, that is what I tell my 6th grade students,” said Mr. Ent who himself enlisted in the Navy a year and a half after he graduated from Marple Newtown High School. 

New to Saint Norbert School, he is married and has 2 children. As a young man, Mr. Ent became a certified diver and, when he enlisted in the Navy after High School, he became an Electrician’s Mate Second Class Officer who really wanted to diversify and was later recruited into the Salvage Diver program. “The Military helped me grow up, travel to a lot of places and meet people” he said. As a Salvage Diver, he repaired ships, dove for recovering weapons, people and explosives. He even spent some time on the famous USS Philadelphia Submarine.  

When asked about the differences between being a 6th grade teacher and a Salvage Diver in the Navy, Mr. Ent said that in some ways being a teacher is harder. While Military life is very structured, teaching can be a lot more creative. He enjoys teaching because he loves to see kids develop and realize their potential. His experience in the Navy helped him become very structured in the way he teaches. “Kids know my expectations, my goal is to ensure that by the time they leave my classroom, they are overly prepared for life.” He also went on to say that he loves the kids at SNS. “They are respectful, full of curiosity and life, I really enjoy being a part of the SNS community.” 

I think the SNS community can agree that they are also enjoying getting to know Mr. Ent. We thank him and all men and women who served in the Armed Forces as we remember Veterans Day 2021 and we welcome Peter Ent to the Saint Norbert School family.