{"id":158495,"date":"2023-11-10T14:50:09","date_gmt":"2023-11-10T19:50:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/?p=158495"},"modified":"2023-11-10T17:39:33","modified_gmt":"2023-11-10T22:39:33","slug":"a-veterans-day-moment-at-bates-all-that-has-been-sacrificed-and-shared","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/2023\/11\/10\/a-veterans-day-moment-at-bates-all-that-has-been-sacrificed-and-shared\/","title":{"rendered":"A Veterans Day moment at Bates, ‘all that has been sacrificed and shared’"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Sophia Cattallani ’25 of Skaneateles, N.Y., kept her trumpet zipped in her jacket, protected from the chilly November air, until midway through this morning’s Veterans Day observance. Then it was time to play, and she did, offering a slow, haunting rendition of taps.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nearby, Kevin Michaud, a Campus Safety officer, stood at attention. He wore a U.S. Air Force cap and offered a firm salute as fellow members of the Bates community listened in silence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Sophia Cattallani \u201825 of Skaneateles, N.Y., prepares to play taps on Nov. 10, 2023, at Veterans Plaza at the Veterans Day observance. (Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For Michaud, this Veterans Day is a day to remember the service of his late brother, George, who was also a veteran of the Air Force. \u201cIt\u2019s the same when I\u2019m working a football game and they play the national anthem,\u201d Michaud said of his salute. \u201cIt\u2019s a sign of respect.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is what the Rev. Brittany Longsdorf, the college’s multifaith chaplain, asked those gathered around the plaza to join her in doing: To think of the veterans in their lives \u2014 the cousins, uncles, neighbors, friends, and colleagues. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the gathering, Longsdorf invited attendees to join in the ritual of laying flowers of remembrance on the plaza. When Cattalani placed her flower, she remembered her grandfather, who had served in the Vietnam War and died two years ago. He was one reason she wanted to come play the iconic bugle call that is played at military funerals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI felt I was playing it for him today, in his honor, and for the people here, for those they hold in their hearts,\u201d said Cattallani, who offered last year’s taps as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Longsdorf reminded the group that for 105 years, Americans have stopped once a year \u201cto pause and reflect on all that has been sacrificed and shared in a continual journey towards freedom and peace.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Phyllis
One of more than a dozen carnations adorns Veterans Plaza after the Veterans Day observance held on Nov. 10, 2023, to honor those who have served. (Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

And, she emphasized: Everyone knows someone who has served our country. “We all have veterans in our lives in ways both big and small.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Longsdorf’s family, \u201cmy Papa served in the Navy, my cousins in the Army, a close friend in the Marines,” she said. “My aunt worked for the Coast Guard for a while, my 3-year-old daughter\u2019s best friend\u2019s dad is currently deployed. We have new neighbors who are becoming close friends who served in the Navy.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Longsdorf called the experience of knowing and being cared for by the work and sacrifice of veterans \u201cone of the most shared human experiences.\u201d Unfortunately, she shared with the group, many veterans have told her about the pain of feeling unseen for their service, which they consider a contribution to society, even a part of their identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"All
Multifaith Chaplain Brittany Longsdorf pauses at Veterans Plaza during the Veterans Day observance held on Nov. 10, 2023. (Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

She asked those gathered to think of one veteran they knew when they placed their carnation on top of the plaza\u2019s smooth, reflective black surface. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt means something \u2014 it really means something to pause today to acknowledge all of the ways our country, our communities, and our lives have been shaped by the veterans in our midst,\u201d Longsdorf said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michaud, who served in the Air Force for 13 years, appreciated that Bates created Veterans Plaza three years ago<\/a>, offering a place he can visit on a more regular basis to remember all the veterans he has known. Michaud also appreciated that Bates President Gary W. Jenkins sent letters to all the veterans on the Bates staff and faculty this year, to thank them for their service. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt means an awful lot. It\u2019s nice to know Bates remembers us,\u201d Michaud said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Phyllis
Bates Campus Safety Officer Kevin Michaud lays a flower on Nov. 10, 2023, at Veterans Plaza during the observance that honored the service of veterans. (Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Michaud, who at times has worked nights during his nearly nine years at Bates, often has stopped by the plaza at the start of a night shift “to pay my respects.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As James Reese placed his flower, he remembered his uncle, Charles Kennedy, a career Army soldier stationed in Georgia. Kennedy didn\u2019t talk much about his time in the Army, but Reese knew he was proud of his service. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou could tell he was very sincere,\u201d said Reese, associate dean for international student programs at Bates. \u201cHis commitment and what he thought about it, his place amidst the struggles of society going on at that time. He wanted to be of service, to help improve society.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Phyllis
Peter Morgan \u201872 of Raymond (left), who served in the U.S. Coast Guard, talks with Jay Phillips, Bates director of facility services operations. (Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Peter Morgan ’72 of Raymond, who served in the U.S. Coast Guard during the Vietnam War, came to honor three young men with whom he served and who died while they were stationed in New Jersey. He had their names on a card he was considering leaving on the plaza’s granite stone, alongside the flowers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThank you for doing this,\u201d Morgan said of the multifaith gathering. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sophia Cattallani ’25 of Skaneateles, N.Y., kept her trumpet zipped in her…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1705,"featured_media":158512,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_hide_ai_chatbot":false,"_ai_chatbot_style":"","associated_faculty":[],"_Page_Specific_Css":"","_bates_restrict_mod":false,"_table_of_contents_display":false,"_table_of_contents_location":"","_table_of_contents_disableSticky":false,"_is_featured":false,"footnotes":"","_bates_seo_meta_description":"","_bates_seo_block_robots":false,"_bates_seo_sharing_image_id":0,"_bates_seo_sharing_image_twitter_id":0,"_bates_seo_share_title":"","_bates_seo_canonical_overwrite":"","_bates_seo_twitter_template":""},"categories":[7,243,220,224],"tags":[9031,12156],"class_list":["post-158495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni","category-annual-events","category-service","category-society-culture","tag-veterans-day","tag-veterans-plaza"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158495","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1705"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=158495"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158495\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":158562,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158495\/revisions\/158562"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/158512"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=158495"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=158495"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=158495"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}