Seven Scranton High School students are in Washington, D.C., where they are visiting monuments, touring museums and preparing to witness Monday's inauguration of President Barack Obama. Saturday night, they talked about their experiences in the nation's Capitol. You can also follow their travels on Twitter @SHSinDC, #NEPAinDC.
Donna Doherty, 18, spent Saturday gazing at the stone likenesses of former presidents and leaders around Washington, D.C.
For her, the most impressive was the Franklin Delano Roosevelt memorial.
"We learned a lot about his terms; it showed the New Deal, everything that he did throughout his four terms," Donna said, adding that she liked the way the memorial was broken into four sections - one for each term.
Today, she plans to visit the Lincoln Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Joining her will be Rachel Kovach, 17.
Rachel's favorite stop Saturday was the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial because she was moved by many of the quotes carved into the stone.
"'Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that,' " Rachel said, citing her favorite quote. "'Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.' "
Sean DeFazio, 17, said he enjoyed reading quotes from the Declaration of Independence at the Thomas Jefferson Memorial.
He's interested in seeing the Vietnam War Memorial and the Korean War Memorial, since he just interviewed a veteran of both wars for a history class project.
Lindsey Jordan, 17, participated in Saturday's National Day of Service. Upon entering a large white tent in downtown Washington, D.C., she saw a station where she could package a personal drawing with a book that would be delivered to a needy child.
Taking up pencils and markers, she began to draw a peace sign, a heart and a book.
"Peace, love and read," Lindsey said. "I drew that to put a smile on someone's face and it's easy to understand."
Contact the writer: jkohut@timesshamrock.com, @jkohutTT on Twitter