Next week, Veteran’s Day will be observed on Friday, Nov. 10. This means the school will be closed, and there are multiple events scheduled at all the different Sinclair campuses to honor military veterans throughout the week.
Veteran Services Manager Becky Jones and Veteran Services Specialist Emily Demeter plan these events every year, and will be attending different events during the week.
A luncheon will be held on Thursday, Nov. 9 at noon in the Tartan Terrace restaurant. Tartan Terrace is located on the fourth floor of building 13. The cost will be $5 per person, with one guest per veteran allowed. Credit cards are the only form of payment accepted.
“The event I look forward to the most is the Tartan Terrace Luncheon,” Jones said. “This gives us a chance to meet and get to know some of the veterans here, and it also gives the Culinary Arts department a chance to showcase what they do and what they have learned.”
There will also be a free oil change giveaway next week. The Automotive department has agreed to give away one free oil change to six Sinclair student-veterans.
“These will be given out in the form of vouchers starting Nov. 6,” said Jones. “They will be first-come, first-serve and can be picked up in the Veteran Services office, located in building 11 room 342.”
Sinclair plans on keeping the giving spirit active with non-students who may be in need also.
“We polled our student-veterans, and the overwhelming responses were that students wanted to donate needed items to veterans,” said Demeter. “So we spoke with the Dayton VA and were told they were in desperate need of thermal undergarments to give to veterans in need. They have not had any thermal donations in the past two years.”
These thermal donations are being accepted by the Veteran Services office through Nov. 1 and will be donated next week to the Dayton VA. There will also be blanket knotting stations set up at various events throughout the week, and these fleece blankets will also be donated.
“We wanted to find something to engage and connect with students here, and give them a chance to have hands on involvement,” Demeter said. “We are knotting the edges together and signing the knots to give the recipients a more personal connection to the students.”
The week will also include the 5th Annual Remembrance Walk at the Downtown Dayton campus and the 2nd Annual Remembrance Walk at the Mason campus.
The Remembrance walks are designed to give people a chance to take a moment to think about the sacrifices made by veterans for this country and its citizens. Passerbys would also be given a chance to see others participating and perhaps take a moment to themselves to think about it as well.
The week will then culminate with a screening of “The Court-Martial of Jackie Robinson” in the stage area of building 8 at 1:00 p.m. Light refreshments will be served during the film.
Remember to visit the website at www.sinclair.edu/veteran-week to see the entire schedule of events.
Paul Helmers
Reporter