��Vlog��ý Little Rock Veterans Day ceremony highlights unique experiences of military students

Thu, 14 Nov 2019 18:19:57 +0000

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Chancellor Christina Drale and Director of Military Student Success Kathy Oliverio are serious about their commitment to military student success. This week, ��Vlog��ý Little Rock hosted a Veterans Day ceremony featuring first-hand stories of career transition and personal renewal from the university’s military students. After 10 years of active duty in the Air Force, Staff Sergeant Kaycee Greenwood transitioned into a training manager role for the Air Force Reserve where she works to prepare the next generation of crew chiefs. Now a ��Vlog��ý Little Rock doctoral candidate in education, Greenwood plans to continue supporting the training needs of the Air Force. “My experiences at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock have been nothing short of amazing,” said Greenwood. “I love being a lifelong student.” Biology major Alexis Harris, a native of Sherwood, always looked forward to someday earning a degree at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, her mother’s alma mater. Harris served as a Navy intelligence specialist from 2013 to 2019. Her global experiences ranged from providing humanitarian support to imagery data support. “I am grateful for the opportunities provided to me by the Navy,” said Harris. “The Navy has showed me where I am strong and where I can improve. I am thankful for my time in the Navy, no matter how hard the growing process was at the time.” Marine Corps veteran Sean Lewis served four years with duties ranging from cyber network operator to machine gun operator. His global experiences ranged from duties in Afghanistan to working with children in Japan. Lewis admits that he joined the Marine Corps primarily because his mother told him not to join the military and go to college. He graduated high school at 16 and waited for his opportunity to join the military. He spent his 18th birthday on a bus headed to training. Since leaving the Marines, Lewis has served in law enforcement and as a private military contractor. This academic year, though, Lewis is a freshman biology student at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock student veterans, Kaycee Greenwood, US Air Force Reserve, center, and Sean Lewis, US Marine Corps., right, participate in a Veterans Day ceremony held in the Stella Boyle Smith Auditorium. Photo by Ben Krain

“I may be a little late, Mom, but I’m in college now,” chuckled Lewis. Army wife Neva Martin shared her story of what it means to support a disabled veteran. After many tours of duty with special forces and plans to retire on the near horizon, Martin’s husband was injured in a tank explosion. “I’m so grateful that my wonderful husband is still here,” said Martin. “When he returned home that last time, he was different. He needed physical therapy and mental health therapy to overcome the effects of PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder).” The path of recovery and renewal for Martin and her husband has taken over a decade and in some ways still continues. Martin is dedicated to continuing her role as a steadfast Army wife, seeing her husband through the entirety of their journey together. “Being an Army wife is a wonderful but stressful job,” Martin said. “My advice to other service member families is to stick together, rely on faith, and seek help for PTSD and physical injuries.” Oliverio emphasized that military students bring a wealth of knowledge and unique experience to the education environment. They also carry internal battles that result from their commitment to serving our country. “The ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Military Success Center is dedicated to supporting these incredible American citizens who volunteered all of their being to serve on our behalf,” Oliverio said.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock honors gold star families at Memorial Day Service

Ajani Oyindamola — Fri, 02 Jun 2017 15:58:51 +0000

During a May 30 Memorial Day ceremony, the University of Arkansas at Little Rock honored families whose relatives made the ultimate sacrifice while serving their country. “Memorial Day is about remembering those who served and sacrificed their lives for this country,” Chancellor Andrew Rogerson said. “This year we are honoring Gold Star families. Let us never forget Memorial Day is the time for Americans, as one body, to stand and say, ‘Thank you; we remember you; we are eternally grateful to you.’” Gold Star families are immediate relatives of U.S. Armed Forces members who died in battle or in support of certain military activities. The term is a World War I reference. “Family members would hang a service flag in their window, which included a blue star for every immediate family member serving in the Armed Forces,” said Kathy Oliverio, director of military student success. “If a family member was killed in action, the blue star was replaced with a gold star.” During the ceremony, the Little Rock Air Force Base Honor Guard presented the colors, while Mandi Carreiro and Karen Kuralt sang the national anthem. Michael Eubanks, secretary of ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Students Affected by the Military, played taps via saxophone. Guest speaker Chief Master Sergeant Bubba Beason, who retired from the U.S. Air Force in 2016, described how a 2007 encounter with a Gold Star mother changed his life forever. Then-First Sergeant Beason was participating in a marathon in commemoration of the Bataan Death March. When the U.S. surrendered the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines to the Japanese in 1943, approximately 75,000 Filipino and American troops were forced to march a treacherous 65-mile journey to prison camps. Thousands of soldiers died during the march. While at the marathon, Beason struck up a conversation with Janice Bridges, who was wearing a pin with a picture of her son Michael Paul Bridges. Beason asked where Michael was stationed, but Janice replied that she was a Gold Star mother.

Retired Chief Master Sergeant Bubba Beason describes his experience with Gold Star Families.

Beason was unfamiliar with the term, so Janice explained her son was killed in Iraq the previous year (2006), weeks before he was scheduled to come home. “I didn’t know what to say,” Beason said. “I couldn’t believe that after 16 years in the military I did not know what a Gold Star mother is.” Moved by her story, Beason asked Janice if he could carry one of Michael’s possessions during the marathon to honor his sacrifice. Janice gave him Michael’s watch, which gave Beason great strength during the marathon. “Every time I wanted to stop, I looked at Michael’s watch,” Beason said. “The pain I was going through was nothing compared to the pain Michael’s mother was going through.” “Since that day 10 years ago, I’ve approached life differently,” Beason said. “My life changed because I met a Gold Star mother.” To honor his fallen brothers and sisters, Beason organized the first. Now in its fifth year, the event draws people from throughout the state who walk a mile in honor of every Arkansas service member who died while serving since Sept. 11, 2001. Beason has helped organize similar runs in New Jersey, California, Arizona, and South Carolina. “They are my brothers and sisters,” Beason said. “It is my duty to remember their sacrifices every day.” In the upper right photo, Janessa Rogerson and Chancellor Andrew Rogerson watch Michael Eubanks play the taps during ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s May 30 Memorial Day service. Photo by Lonnie Timmons III/��Vlog��ý Little Rock Communications.

- University News Archive - ����Vlog��ý Little Rock

����Vlog��ý Little Rock Veterans Day ceremony highlights unique experiences of military students

����Vlog��ý Little Rock honors gold star families at Memorial Day Service

- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock

��Vlog��ý Little Rock Veterans Day ceremony highlights unique experiences of military students

��Vlog��ý Little Rock honors gold star families at Memorial Day Service