Veterans Day celebrations at UA feature luncheon, football game, food drive, charity dinner

The University of Akron (UA) is celebrating Veterans Day with several events and initiatives, including a program on Wednesday, Nov. 11, for students, faculty and staff who are veterans, military service members, ROTC members and their families, and invited guests.

UA supports both veterans and active military members through the Military Services Center by providing comprehensive enrollment and referral services to new and returning veterans and their families. The University has twice been recognized as a Collegiate Purple Star campus by the Ohio Department of Higher Education (ODHE) for its continued commitment to supporting military-connected students. UA recently earned the Seven Seals Award, which recognizes an organization's significant achievement in support of employees who are members of U.S. Reserve and National Guard. The Seven Seals Award is given by the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), a program of the Department of Defense.

Questions about any of the events below can be directed to [email protected] or Mary Rossett, director of the Military Services Center, at 330-972-7382 or [email protected].

Salute the Troops at Akron football

UA will honor veterans and military members on Tuesday, Nov. 10, at the Akron football team's home game against Western Michigan. The game starts at 7 p.m. at InfoCision Stadium-Summa Health Field.

UA student Devan Bracey of Akron, an Air Force veteran who served as a diet therapy technician and was stationed during her service at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, and Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, Calif., will be honored as the Bryant Heating & Cooling Systems True Hero of the Game. Bracey is a sophomore in the food and nutrition science program in the College of Health and Human Sciences.

The University's POW/MIA chair of honor in the northwest corner of the stadium will be noted. The chair symbolizes the more than 91,000 POW/MIA service members since World War I. It remains perpetually empty as a reminder that even though these soldiers are not here, there's still a place for them.

Campus community Veterans Day celebration

The Military Services Center, Student Veterans of America and ROTC invite faculty, staff and other guests to attend the Honoring Those Who Serve Celebration on Wednesday, Nov. 11, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., in the Musson Military Veterans Lounge on the third floor of InfoCision Stadium-Summa Field.

The celebration will honor America's veterans for their patriotism, love of country and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good. This social gathering is for any student, faculty and staff member who is a veteran or military service member, ROTC and their families, and invited guests. Lunch will be served and a basket filled with an autographed Cleveland Browns football and other autographed professional sports merchandise will be given away to one attendee.

Food drive for veterans, service members, military widows

The Military Services Center is collecting food donations for the SAM (Serving Area Military) centers in Massillon and Canal Fulton now through Monday, Nov. 16, with delivery on Wednesday, Nov.18. These items will provide Thanksgiving feasts to veterans, service members and military widows in the community:

• Corn muffin mix
  Egg noodles
  Broth
  Turkey gravy packets
  Canned corn
  Canned green beans
  Jell-O mix
  Mushroom soup
  Stuffing mix
  Mashed potatoes
  Cranberry sauce
  $10 grocery gift cards

Donations can be dropped off at the following locations around campus:

• Military Services Center - Simmons Hall, Room 305 (Mary Rossett)
  Office of Accessibility - Simmons Hall, Room 105 (Rachel Davis)
  Adult Focus - Polsky Building, Room 467 (Scott Roberts)
  Student Recreation & Wellness Services - SRWS Welcome Desk (Nick Weber)
  College of Health and Human Sciences Academic Advising - Polsky Building, Room 285 (Ben Rochester)
  Admissions/Transfer - Simmons Hall, Room, 209 (Greg Landis)
  Zip Assist - Simmons Hall, front desk (Heather Barhorst)
  Residence Life and Housing - Ritchie Residence Hall lobby (Jennifer Attenweiler)
  Career Services and Student Employment - Jean Hower Taber Student Union, 216 (Laura Carey)

Veterans can apply for the feast by visit servingareamilitary.com. Go to the Programs drop-down menu and click Holiday Programs. The Thanksgiving program sign up will launch on the next page. Contact Rossett at [email protected] with any questions.

The SAM Center program, with the help of its volunteers and donors, helps make sure that Thanksgiving is part of its veterans' holiday season. Last year, SAM provided more than 600 complete Thanksgiving packages to veterans that allowed those heroes to prepare Thanksgiving dinner for nearly 1,600 veterans and their family members.

Military charity dinner for the SAM Center

The UA chapter of the Student Veterans of America and the Military Services Center invite all faculty and staff to attend the 10th annual charity dinner on Saturday, Nov. 21, from 5-9 p.m., at the Jean Hower Taber Student Union ballrooms on the third floor.

The goal of the event is to give back to veterans in the local community by contributing funds raised for a local charity that supports veterans. This year, the SAM Center has been chosen as the beneficiary. This organization provides food, shelter, holiday programs, structured therapies and resource training to veterans and their families.

The Military Services Center is reaching out to colleagues on campus for volunteers to gather donations and put together a themed basket for the raffle. Some of the basket themes from last year's event include fishing, game night, movies and dinner, wine and cheese, and tickets to sporting events. Donations can be submitted to the Military Services Center by 3 p.m., on Thursday, Nov. 12. The best donation/basket submitted by a department will be notified that day and receive four complimentary tickets to the dinner.

A raffle and disc jockey are planned for the evening. Semi-formal attire is suggested. The dinner will feature beef, chicken and vegan entree options.

Tickets are $40 and will be available until Monday, Nov. 16, at 5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at https://commerce.cashnet.com/ORGMILVET or by contacting the Military Services Center at [email protected].

Those who cannot attend but wish to donate, may do so on the same online site. For questions, contact Rossett at 330-972-7382 or [email protected].

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