The clean-shaven J.J. Cummings 鈥�89 doesn’t look at all like Uncle Sam. But a message he gave 乐播传媒 students on Oct. 9 resonated with Sam’s words on that famous U.S. Army recruiting poster: “I want you.”
In helping to dedicate the new Veterans Plaza, a small campus park designed to inspire thoughtful appreciation for the contributions and sacrifices of 乐播传媒 military veterans, Cummings asked today’s students to consider joining the armed forces.
And if any 乐播传媒 alum has the standing to make such a request, it’s Cummings: The 34-year veteran of the U.S. Navy is commanding officer of the world鈥檚 largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford.
鈥淥ur nation needs liberal arts鈥揺ducated officers in the ranks,鈥� Cummings said. 鈥淲ithout a doubt, 乐播传媒 College made me the leader that I am today.鈥t is clear to me that my worldview and leadership style are different from what I see from my peers.
鈥淚 attribute this to my 乐播传媒 experience, which showed me the value of reading from a variety of sources, critical thinking, intellectual curiosity, strong intelligible writing skills, humility, and integrity.鈥�
Cummings was the keynote speaker for the virtual dedication of the plaza, culminating a project that began in early 2018. The midday livestream also featured college President Clayton Spencer, U.S. Rep. Jared Golden 鈥�11, professor Jane Costlow, Janell Sato 鈥�22, Multifaith Chaplain Brittany Longsdorf, and retired Facility Services staff member Danny Sands, a member of the committee that developed the project.
A video montage combining aerial and ground-level shots gave viewers a visual introduction to the plaza, which was created during the summer on a site near the Residential Village, about 250 feet northwest of Garcelon Field’s north goalposts.
The plaza’s design is by Michael Boucher Landscape Architecture, which previously handled the Ladd Library Plaza project, among others. The contractor was Carrier Landscape.
Complete video of the dedication of the Veterans Plaza on Oct. 9, 2020.
As Spencer explained in her welcoming remarks, the Veterans Plaza is intended to 鈥渉onor military service as a form of public service, but not militarism or nationalism per se.鈥� It’s meant to recognize the contributions and sacrifices of all 乐播传媒 veterans, rather than any one individual.
And its location and design 鈥� including benches, a central stone focal object, and a screen of trees 鈥� should foster tranquillity. The plaza 鈥渟hould inspire contemplation and welcome the varied interpretations that individuals may bring to the subject of war and military service.鈥�
Spencer continued, 鈥淗enceforth, Veterans Plaza will be part and parcel of our mission to educate and transform lives.鈥� She quoted Pericles: 鈥淲hat you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others.鈥�
She said, 鈥淰eterans Plaza is sign, symbol, and celebration of the service and sacrifice of those who have preceded us, in this space dedicated on this day for the current generation and the many generations that will follow.”
A visual introduction to the Veterans Plaza, including aerial video. (Theophil Syslo/乐播传媒 College)
Clark A. Griffith Professor of Environmental Studies as well as a scholar of Russian literature, Costlow discussed the plaza’s relevance to the college’s educational mission. While making clear that her own understanding of war has come from family members鈥� service and Eastern European literature, she said that nevertheless 鈥渁ll of those stories give me a sense of the reality of war and the consequences for humans, both soldiers and civilians, whose lives are swept up in military conflict.鈥�
The reality and consequences of war, Costlow said, have been mirrored in the writings of Leo Tolstoy, who fought in the Crimean War; Vasily Grossman, a Soviet-Jewish reporter whose writings about Treblinka were among the earliest journalistic accounts of a Nazi death camp; memoirs of women who survived the siege of Leningrad; 鈥渁nd the stories of my own dear friends who were evacuated from Ukraine as German forces were pushing East.鈥�
She continued, 鈥淭eachers at a place like 乐播传媒 ask our students to grapple with the great complexities of life, complexities born of politics and history, but also of human psychology itself. I treasure the fact that young men and women I taught have joined the military and have taken some of their 乐播传媒 conversations and readings into lives that have no doubt demanded great wisdom and complicated decisions.鈥�
鈥淢y hope as a teacher is that with time, this memorial that we dedicate today will become a place for 乐播传媒 undergraduates to hear and reflect on many stories鈥ut where they also might hear the voices of alums and peers as they share their own memories and reflections on their experiences of service and combat.鈥�
Capt. Cummings established the most encompassing context for the dedication. This only makes sense considering both his 乐播传媒 background and his decades as a U.S. Navy officer, a career that also included flying combat missions over Afghanistan in 2001 and 2002.
In his wry and lively seven minutes, livestreamed from the flight deck of the Ford, Cummings noted that while it’s nice to thank members of the armed forces for their service, the sacrifices made by their families justify as much, if not more, gratitude.
He pointed out 乐播传媒鈥� longstanding support for the armed forces, such as hosting a Navy V-12 officer training program during World War II; and for veterans, citing the “Sampsonville鈥� housing for WWII vets attending 乐播传媒, and for their families, that the college established not far from the Veterans Plaza.
The plaza 鈥渋s yet another example of how 乐播传媒 College has moved beyond words and taken action to honor veterans,鈥� Cummings said. 鈥淪ites like this are not generally found at NESCAC schools.鈥�
And he expressed the hope that today’s 乐播传媒 students would take a minute to absorb the import of the plaza. 鈥淚 hope they understand that every service member volunteers to raise their right hand to recite an oath to support and defend 鈥� not one man, a king, a queen or a tyrant or political party 鈥� but the Constitution of the United States.”
Jared Golden 鈥�11, who represents Maine’s 2nd District in Congress, offered brief remarks. A Marine Corps combat veteran of Afghanistan and Iraq, he envisioned the plaza as a place where he, personally, might think about 乐播传媒 people who died while serving.
鈥淲here might they be today? What potential has been lost? What great things would they be doing if they hadn’t made the sacrifice? 鈥� a worthy sacrifice for our country, but we should still take stock of the loss for the entire country and of course, particularly for their families.鈥�
Danny Sands, too, is a combat veteran, having served with the U.S. Army in Vietnam. His connection to 乐播传媒 is professional: Last year he retired from Facility Services after 32 years, ending his 乐播传媒 career as manager of carpentry, painting, and masonry.
As a member of the Veterans Recognition Project Committee, Sands was most impressed by the committee鈥檚 unified commitment to make the project work, despite disparate viewpoints and life experiences among members.
鈥淎s the committee meetings went on,鈥� he explained, 鈥渋t was clear that there was a great deal of work ahead. Yet everyone took this seriously, [even with] the wide range of backgrounds within the group, which made the meetings interesting, to say the least. My thoughts were that this amount of work seemed less important than the objective that we were trying to reach.鈥�
Representing 乐播传媒 students was Janell Sato 鈥�22 of Honolulu, scion of a family with meaningful military connections. Her great-grandfather served in a highly decorated U.S. Army regiment during World War II. Her father is a lieutenant colonel in the Hawaii National Guard, and her older brother is on active duty in the Marines. (Her younger brother, Jarrin, is a 乐播传媒 first-year.)
“May those whose bodies still carry the terror and wounds of war find healing here. May those whose minds still feel haunted by violence and hardship find calm here.”
The plaza 鈥渋s a perfect environment to honor and acknowledge the inspiring work that has been done,鈥� Sato said. 鈥淲hen you sit on the benches and hear the rustling leaves and feel the slight breeze blowing softly on your skin, you are able to take a moment in, and honor all those who have served.鈥�
鈥淚 personally love taking breaks from my studies by going out to the Veterans Plaza and just enjoying the peace and quiet this environment provides.鈥�
Longsdorf offered a benediction to conclude the ceremony. She said, 鈥淢ay those whose bodies still carry the terror and wounds of war find healing here. May those whose minds still feel haunted by violence and hardship find calm here. May those whose hearts still ache with grief, loss, and woe for a beloved lost in warfare find remembrance here.
鈥淢ay those whose souls have felt heavy with the burden of duty and service find peace here. May this space invoke in all of us an awe for freedom, liberation, and justice, and inspire us to honor all those who have served and strived to amplify these ideals.鈥�
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