The Western Illinois University Veterans Resource Center held a celebration Nov. 10 at the Alumni House to commemorate the 250th birthday of the U.S. Army, Navy and Marines.
Area veterans joined WIU VRC students and staff for cake, followed by assembling holiday care packages for deployed students.
WIU Graduate and Marine Corps Veteran Cory Booher kicked off the celebration by reading a birthday message penned, and first read, by Marine Corps Gen. John LeJeune on Nov. 10, 1921, which commemorates the Marine Corps' history. The message is read every Nov. 10, with an updated conclusion added for the respective year. The message emphasizes the 'eternal spirit' of the Corps and that its history is a record of honor and achievement in both war and peace, from the earliest battles to modern conflicts.
Care packages are ready to be assembled for deployed students.
U.S. Army Veteran Chyneah Holt uses the ceremonial sword to present a piece of cake to Army Veteran John Hemingway.
In true military fashion, cakes for the Army and Navy were cut by the youngest veterans present, using a ceremonial sword, with the cake presented to the oldest veteran present.
Lowell Armstrong of Macomb represented the oldest Naval veteran, with the cake presented by VRC Director Navy Chaplain Ron Pettigrew. WIU student and Army Veteran Chyneah Holt cut the Army cake and presented to Recreation Professor Emeritus and Army Veteran John Hemingway. Booher represented the youngest and oldest Marine veteran present.
Nearly 250 active duty and veterans (students, faculty and staff) are currently part of the WIU community. In addition to the 250th celebration Nov.
10, Western hosted a variety of activities, including a Veterans' Day Ceremony Nov. 11, in honor of Military Appreciation Week.
For more information on the WIU, visit wiu.edu/veterans.
Veteran and WIU Alumna Dr. Christine Standard was the featured speaker at WIU's Veterans' Day ceremony. WIU Ceremony Photos courtesy of Rachael Keating, University Photography
Top photo: Marine Corps Veteran and WIU Graduate Cory Booher reads Gen. John LeJeune’s birthday message, penned in 1921, while VRC Director Ron Pettigrew looks on. Bottom photo: Lowell Armstrong gets a slice of the Navy cake from Chaplain Ron Pettigrew.
WIU ROTC Color Guard.
