Week 13: Veteran's Day Commencement Ceremony

The Ceremony

This week on the Veteran's History Project our hard work and planning came to fruition. Despite the difficulty we found ourselves in last week, our team was able to successfully move and orchestrate the Veterans Day commencement ceremony this past Wednesday, November 16th.  Not only was it amazing to see our hard work honored by the event's success,  it was also amazing to see how deeply it was appreciated by the veterans that attended in our community. I had the honor of being present when UCF was designated a Purple Heart University;  we are now one of the five universities in the State of Florida to be recognized with this honor.  As the band played as the flag was raised,  it could be clearly communicated that each person that attended was filled with a sense of honor and pride as we remember those who sacrificed their lives for our country. 

Meeting with a Purple Heart Veteran

With the ceremony that took place this week, I had the honor of interviewing a Purple Heart recipient from the Vietnam War today. His story is unique in the sense that he was part of the K9 force that was present in Vietnam.  He held tears back as he recalled the moment his platoon went under fire and the dog he had known for years and trained and became best friends sacrificed his life as he lay on top of his owner taking a bullet to his head. This veteran talked deeply of survivor's guilt and how throughout his life he has done everything he can to reach those who rescued him to thank them for their service. He spoke highly of the three men that died during that attack and how he deeply wished to keep their memory alive. I informed him that because of his interview not only will the three men that died be remembered, but his dog, “Cap”, who sacrificed his life, will also be remembered. It's moments like these that I am reminded how important our project is. If I've learned anything, it's the value of the human soul and the stories only it can tell.