“My friend has been gone for 47 years. Those are 47 years that I have been given and he has not. That is a sobering thought,” began Interim President Carl Balsam during his opening remarks at yesterday’s Annual Veterans Day Commemoration Service, which took place in Anderson Chapel. “One comment left on my friend’s site caught my eye; it said: ‘Save one backward glance when you are leaving for the places they no longer can go.’ In other words, remember them.”

This year’s Veterans Day Service was organized by student-veterans Nico Canete and Roberto Martinez in conjunction with Dr. John Laukaitis and Renee Martinez. The guest speaker for the service was a friend of Nico’s, Weston Polaski, who served in the United States Marine Corps from 2005-2009.

Polaski shared his story on his road to enlistment and proceeded to give an account of what life was like throughout boot camp and into his first deployment. Polaski described some of the desperate living conditions he encountered during his initial time of deployment. He also described an encounter on the phone with his father where Polaski asked him “what am I doing here?” to which Polaski’s father replied, “you probably should have gone to class, huh?” Polaski described how this one call spurred him on to the next adventure back home in America where he returned to school to finish his degree.

Since his arrival back home, Polaski has made efforts to connect with Veterans and create connections for returning Veterans. Polaski began as the President of the Student Veteran Club at his alma mater and has since moved on to aiding the transition of returning veterans by connecting them with local businesses and veterans. “Every year over the next 5 years, 250,000 service members will exit the military,” Polaski said—all of whom will need jobs, education, and communities.

After the service, Nico Canete commented on why events like these at North Park are important to him and other veterans on campus: “It demonstrates the University’s commitment to those who have served. It reaffirms that the University supports veterans, supports them in their transition from military to academic life, and that it is proud to have them on campus.” Roberto Martinez also added that “It shows me that I’m welcome here as a US Army veteran; it shows me that we honor the sacrifice of those who went before us, and shows me that veterans are welcome here. It also gives us a sense of brotherhood and a place to share our experiences whether in combat or not.”

Dr. John Laukaitis had this to say in his closing remarks to conclude the Annual Veterans Day Service, “Our country has depended on veterans to stand strong against the threats to our liberty and way of life. They serve without expectation of recognition; they are humble servants. We thank you, the men and women, who have courageously put their lives in harm’s way for the sake of our country; today we thank the veterans of our country.”

70 years ago, Rev. Eric Hawkinson and North Park College students, family, and friends stood over a bronze plaque on the back side of campus, inscribed: “Dedicated to the Memory of Alumni and Students of North Park College Who Gave Their Lives in the Service of Their Country During World War II.” After a number of years, the plaque was removed from its stand and placed into storage.

During Dr. John Laukaitis’ research on North Park in the Second World War, he stumbled upon this artifact in the school’s archives. “I came across the World War II memorial plaque in the F.M. Johnson Archives and Special Collections last summer. Removed at some point and stored, the memorial plaque, heavily tarnished, showed its age,” said Dr. Laukaitis in an article he wrote to be published for the Covenant History Newsletter, used by his permission. This research and discovery of the plaque drove Dr. Laukaitis into writing a chapter in a book he is editing, Denominational Higher Education During World War II (Palgrave Macmillan).

“I shared drafts of the chapter with colleagues and students, including student veteran Nico Canete,” said Dr. Laukaitis. Nicholas Canete, Class of 2018, is a student veteran, who served in the Navy, beginning his school career in 2015 after his enlistment contract expired. “Nine months before my arrival on campus, I was on an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf as we were launching air strikes against ISIS every day. Suddenly, I was sitting in the comfort of a college classroom where the conversation was mostly theoretical,” Canete wrote for the same article. When he heard of the plaque, Canete jumped on the opportunity and spoke to interim President Carl Balsam to have the plaque restored and reinstalled.

Canete also wrote about his transition from fighting ISIS on an aircraft carrier to sitting in a lecture hall, “what made that first year easier for me was the people at North Park. North Park’s community has welcomed me to the fullest extent of its hospitality. The reinstallation of the World War II memorial plaque is an example of this generosity. For my fellow student veteran friends and me on campus, some of whom have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, the plaque represents the University’s commitment to honoring and supporting those who have served.”

Dr. John Laukaitis and Nico Canete invite you to join with them and the North Park Community for a rededication on the 70th anniversary of the plaque’s initial instillation. The ceremony will be held at Isaacson Chapel at 6 pm on September 15 where each of the 45 fallen will be honored by name and any other information available.