Tenesha Hughes
Staff Writers
The Veterans and Military Center partnered with the Metro Jackson Community Prevention Coalition (MJCPC) on Veteran’s Day in a program entitled: “Honoring Our Student Veterans” in the JSU Student Center ballrooms.
Veterans Day, celebrated nationally on Nov. 11, is the anniversary of the signing of the armistice, the agreement which ended World War I hostilities between the allied nations and Germany in 1918. Veterans are honored for their service to the United States on this day.
The event began with a posting of colors ceremony by Jim Hill High School J.R.O.T.C, singing of the National Anthem by Jonathan Winters and Antonio Williams, a performance by JSU MADDRAMA Performance Troupe and a special poem read by Kimberly Jones-Ward, Coordinator of JSU VA Benefits and Program Counselor.
The guest speaker for the event was Major DeRitha Barber, a member of the U.S. Army, who shared her personal experience as an African-American female officer, veteran and social-worker in the Army National Guard.
“Day after day they ask me why do you go away, what makes you leave your family. I think that you should stay. My child who is standing at the door clutching her father’s hand and saying with a choking voice, ‘Mommy please don’t go’. I must answer them, I need them to know it is not for the fame or glory or riches that I go, I go for you,” said Barber.
She added: “For all that have a son; for all that have a daughter; for all that have a special loved one; I know that when they hurt or a harmful bullet has settled deep, someone will be there for them to ease them as they sleep. So when you see me pack my bags and leave for land so far away it is not part of heart that has gone astray it is for love of country and freedom duties, but most of all I go to bring them back to you.”
Veleshia P. Williams, MJCPC Director and U.S. Army Veteran Major, encouraged everyone to pause for a moment of silence for all veterans.
“We celebrate Veterans Day the 11th month and the 11th day and at 11 o’clock we pause for a moment of silence for all persons who have sacrificed and fought for our country. As a black female who served in the military for over nine years, I know the heartache it is to leave a family but I know the joy it is when they return. For those who didn’t get to return, we pause and acknowledge and thank them,” said Williams
Shavon Mabory, a senior biology/pre-vet major from Meridian, Miss., is a MSIV member of ROTC at JSU.
“It was very important for me to come today simply because my mother was speaking, but not only that, it is a very honorary moment to be a part of the Veterans Day program and to see all the faces of veterans, future veterans and past veterans. It is a nice experience,” said Mabory.
The JSU Veterans Center was established to improve and enhance the success of student veterans, to help them receive the benefits they deserve, to serve as a liaison between the veteran student community and the University and to increase their academic success.
The center develops and implements outreach programs designed to provide student support services focused on the special needs and requirements of today’s military veterans, service members, dependents and survivors.
Be First to Comment