The University of Findlay will honor the service of its veterans with a Veterans Day celebration at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 11, at the Veterans Honor Wall in the Watterson Center, and area residents are invited to join the campus community for the ceremony, the university announced Oct. 30.
The ceremony takes place at the Veterans Honor Wall in the Watterson Center, 233 Davis Street in Findlay. The wall carries the names of University of Findlay veterans and, as part of this year’s program, the new names being added this year will be read aloud, according to the university’s announcement.
"Please join us as we honor the service, bravery, and commitment of our University of Findlay veterans," Samuel Yates, a 2016 graduate and president of the Alumni Board of Governors, which is coordinating the event, said in the university’s announcement.
The keynote speaker will be Vernon Preston, a retired U.S. Navy captain and retired judge of the Ohio Third District Court of Appeals, whose ties to the university run back more than five decades. Preston graduated from Findlay College in 1972 with a bachelor’s degree in biology and played varsity football for the Oilers, later returned to campus as an adjunct professor teaching equine law for 14 years, and was named a Distinguished Alumnus in 2012, according to the university.
Preston’s service record spans two eras of American military history. He served on active duty with the U.S. Navy from 1972 to 1978 as a qualified Officer of the Deck on nuclear submarines, was called back by presidential recall for Operation Desert Storm as commanding officer of Cargo Handling Battalion Nine, and held five commands across 25 years in the U.S. Navy Reserve before retiring with the rank of captain, according to the university’s announcement.
After earning his law degree from the University of Toledo, Preston built a legal career that included private practice and service as Findlay city prosecutor, Hancock County assistant prosecutor and magistrate. He then served 13 years as a trial judge in Hancock County and 14 years on the Ohio Third District Court of Appeals before retiring, the university said.
The program will also feature the University of Findlay band playing a salute to the U.S. armed forces, followed by Boy Scout Troop 319 of Findlay presenting the colors. The National Anthem and "God Bless America" will be sung by UF sophomore Eva Hancock, and UF senior Ethan Lantz will give the invocation and lead the Pledge of Allegiance, according to the announcement.
The Veterans Honor Wall itself was a gift to the university on behalf of the 50th anniversary of the Classes of 1966 and 1968. "The wall is a living tribute that serves as a constant reminder on our campus of the many sacrifices that our service men and women have made to give us the freedoms we enjoy today," Yates said in the university’s announcement. "We are honored to call these veterans Oilers."
This year’s ceremony comes as the nation marks America’s 250th birthday, a milestone the university noted in inviting the public. For those who cannot attend in person, the ceremony will be live-streamed on the university’s YouTube channel, according to the announcement.
The Findlay ceremony is one of several ways Hancock County will mark veterans’ season this year; readers can also see NewsForce247’s coverage of Bob Evans Expands Free Veterans Day Meal to All Day With 11 Entrees and, for voters, Hancock County Enters Final Early-Voting Days in Findlay Before Nov. 3 Election.
The Alumni Board of Governors, which is coordinating the event, framed the evening as both a campus ceremony and a community one: the invitation extends beyond students and alumni to all area residents, and the live stream is intended for Findlay veterans and families who cannot be in the Watterson Center in person, according to the university.
What happens next is the ceremony itself: Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 5 p.m. at the Veterans Honor Wall in the Watterson Center, open to the public, with the reading of the new names added to the wall this year.