The two primary events held at the Veterans Memorial each year are the Memorial Day ceremony, and the Veterans Day ceremony, "Lessons of Service," a cooperative effort between PSU and local schools to which all sixth grade students are invited. Both ceremonies are open to the public.
Memorial Day 2019
May 27, 2019
9 a.m.
Keynote speaker: Dr. Andy Klenke, interim chair of Technology & Workforce Learning at PSU and a U.S. Army veteran who has children, siblings, and in-laws currently serving or who are veterans.
The ceremony will include a dedication of new pavers, music, and an invocation and benediction by a local pastor.
Rain location: Bicknell Family Center for the Arts
Wreaths Across America Day
December 15, 2018
1 p.m.
PSU ROTC held a brief ceremony at 1 p.m. Saturday, December 15, 2018 at the Veterans Memorial as part of the nationally observed Wreaths Across America Day held each December.
Wreath-laying ceremonies also were held at Arlington National Cemetery, as well as at more than 1,400 additional locations in all 50 states, at sea, and abroad.
At our ceremony, Senior Cadet Zaw Aung served as the emcee, Lt. Col. Charles Costello, professor of military science, offered remarks, and former service members placed wreaths on stands by memorial seals that represent each branch of service.
Veteran Day 2018
November 12, 2018
1 p.m.*
Location: Student Recreation Center, 2001 S. Rouse, directly south of the Veterans Memorial.
* Please note this year's ceremony will be held in the afternoon — a departure from the morning ceremony of years' past. It will be followed by a presentation by the Quilts of Valor, a non-profit movement to honor wounded service members for their sacrifices by giving them freedom quilts.
Memorial Day 2018
May 28, 2018 at 9:30 a.m.
Keynote speaker: U.S. Army First Lieutenant Kristina Willis (BA '14), whose specialty is military intelligence.
The ceremony will include a dedication of new pavers, music, and an invocation and benediction by a local pastor.
Rain location: Bicknell Family Center for the Arts
Veterans Day 2017
Nov. 10 at 10 a.m.
Keynote speaker: Laurel AuBuchon Shelton, "Honor All Who Served: A Daughter's Perspective of Veterans Day"
The ceremony will include music by the Pittsburg Community Middle School Choir, Pittsburg MultiGenerational Chorus, and trumpet player Henry Zimmermann; a dedication of new pavers; speakers from the PSU Department of Military Science and ROTC; and an invocation and benediction by a local pastor.
Rain location: the Robert W. Plaster Center
Pittsburg State has a long history of commitment to the military, from providing an excellent ROTC program to prepare young cadets to enter the Army, to services and programs to celebrate military-centered holidays, to a dedication to providing a peaceful yet moving experience at the most visited site in southeast Kansas: the PSU Veterans’ Memorial.
