The 2013 Readers Project: Honoring the Fallen

The Evergreen State College Roll Call Memorial, Remembering Fallen U.S. Service Members Resumes May 22

(Olympia, Wash.) The Evergreen State College is inviting the public to participate in its the third Memorial Day commemoration honoring the U.S. military men and women of all races, faiths and nationalities who have died while serving in the Global War on Terror.

The Readers Project: Honoring the Fallen will take place on the college’s Red Square, Wednesday, May 22 from Noon to 1 p.m. The college is located at 2700 Evergreen Parkway NW in Olympia. Parking on campus is $1.00 for a two-hour pass.

The Veterans of Evergreen Transition and Success team (VETS), an advisory group comprised of Evergreen staff, faculty and students is organizing the event.

“The Evergreen State College is proud to provide this opportunity for the community to recognize the fallen service members and contemplate the profound sacrifices that military families and communities throughout the nation are continuing to make,” noted VETS member Paul Gallegos.

At the ceremony, everyone in attendance will be invited to join in a public reading of the names of the service members who perished within the last twelve months as a chorus of respect and remembrance for approximately 250 military personnel who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. In addition, an exhibit of the names of all the U.S. military fatalities since the start of the war will be on display in Evergreen’s Daniel J. Evans Library lobby from May 20 through graduation day, June 14.

The ceremony resumes the roll call memorial that has taken place at the college for the past two years. In 2011, members of the community were selected to recite the names of all 6,058 U.S. service members who had at that point been identified by the Department of Defense as fatalities in the various campaigns of the Global War on Terror. In 2012, selected community readers recited the names of 422 U.S. service members who had been identified as fatalities within the prior 12 months. This year, everyone present will be able to read along as the name and image of each fallen warrior is displayed.

The college will be closed May 27 in observance of Memorial Day.

For more information about student services for veterans, members of the military and dependents at Evergreen, visit www.evergreen.edu/veterans/home.htm.