By Silas Hardison II | Guest Contributor
On Nov. 11 at 11:30 a.m., the University of Lynchburg will host its annual Veterans Day Luncheon in the West Room of Drysdale Student Center.
According to Veterans Coordinator Julie Allen,, attendees can expect welcoming remarks from University of Lynchburg President Alison Morrison-Shetlar, followed by a lunch with and a short keynote address from ‘27 MS student Michael Guertin.
Offering veterans a time and place for fellowship, the annual luncheon celebrates the service of students and alumni who have served or who are in active duty. According to Allen, the event has taken many different forms over the two decades of its existence.
“Last year we had a presentation on the different veterans that graduated from Lynchburg and their service,” Allen said.
During Covid, Allen prepared care packages reminiscent of those soldiers received while overseas for all the older alumni that would have attended.
Justin Peeler ‘27, a navy veteran who assists Allen in the Veterans Affairs office, attended the event his freshman year and spoke favorably of it, highlighting the opportunity to listen to older veterans and the advice they had to offer.
Peeler’s praise was not limited to the event but extended to Allen, who he deemed instrumental to any veteran’s University of Lynchburg experience.
“Julie Allen is a huge boom to all veteran students here at University of Lynchburg,” Peeler says. “She does such an amazing job and she’s just really on top of everything given how she’s the sole person in the veteran’s affairs office.”
Allen comes from a military family, which has driven her to serve those that served.
“She works as a great liaison,” says Peeler. “There’s a lot of moving parts to the university and she’s always able to point people in the right direction and explain the process in a clear and direct way.”
For more information on the Veteran’s Luncheon, visit Alumni Events
