Veteran’s Day is a day of remembering and honoring those veterans who have put their lives on the line to defend their country and our freedom.
Before the holiday was renamed Veteran’s Day, it was once called Armistice Day in commemoration of the end of World War I, according the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. However, in 1954 after the magnitude of World War II was recognized, it was renamed Veteran’s Day to honor not just those who fought in World War I, but all those who fought for our country. Still to this day, Veteran’s Day continues to be an important day of thought and remembrance for veterans across the nation.
The University of New Haven played its part in honoring the country’s veterans. The Military Veterans of UNH held many events on Nov. 11 to honor U.S. veterans.
These events included a display set up at Bartels from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., a Veterans Luncheon in the Alumni Lounge from 12 p.m. to 12:45 p.m., and a Veteran’s Day ceremony held in Bucknall Theatre from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. The day ended in the Alumni Lounge, as the MVUNH co-hosted “Share with a Soldier” with the Psychology Club. The event was a panel about PTSD and a gathering to make cards for soldiers overseas.
The display in Bartels included uniforms from each branch of the military, as well as a set of military flags. It also included various artifacts from the Military Veterans Museum in West Haven, which included a uniform from both World War I and World War II. In addition to the uniforms was a photograph of the most decorated war dog in history, a stray from New Haven who wandered onto a training base during World War I and was sent to Germany with the troops. Many medals, including a Navy Cross, also decorated the tables that reached all the way back to the wall.
The ceremony began right around 1:30 p.m. as members of the Army ROTC with the presenting of the colors as Candice Gagnon sang the national anthem. A series of speakers included MVUNH Committee Chair Tyrell Bridgeforth; UNH President Steven H. Kaplan; Associate Vice President for Graduate Enrollment and Marketing at the University as well as Marine Corps Veteran Sean-Michael Green; and Navy veteran and UNH alumni Jay Snoke who now works for Groton Navy base. The opening and closing prayers were said by Wayne Sanford.
The day ran very smoothly and the ceremony, which was the main event, left many with feelings of pride in our country and our veterans.
“We were pretty happy with the turn out,” said Bridgeforth.
Chris Hanks, who played taps at the ceremony said, “It was very touching, I enjoyed and was honored to play taps at the ceremony!”
Veteran’s Day at UNH was a day of honoring and remembering those who gave up so much for our freedom.
