The Veterans Services Center on campus is a welcoming place for all veterans and military dependents. Their mission is to help veterans and military families adjust to a civilian life as a student after having structured life for so long in the service. They also aim to build a community among the veterans in Laramie and Albany County.
The Veterans Services Center offers many resources for veterans. There are tutors available as well as a computer lab, study room, lounge and kitchen. Members are welcomed to come and study or socialize. They also find resources for students who may need extra support. Veterans Services Center director Marty Martinez explained how the center helps veterans.
“What we do is for our particular center, we invite resources to come in so we do have portions of the VA or other Vet Center, places around the state that come in and support us with other resources that come here and support us,” Martinez said.
“We are more self contained, so we’re more self supportive. We find resources for our students when we realize they’re having some hardships or challenges and we’d go out and try to locate the resources to support them.”
What makes the Veterans Services Center unique is that it is located on the third floor of the Union. This creates a safe and quiet place for the Veterans on campus to go.
Every year the Veterans Services Center hosts the National roll call in which they read names of the fallen.
Volunteers are given a ten minute block with 100 names to read in 10 minutes. There are 7,041 names that will be read this year. They begin reading at 8 a.m. and end at 8 p.m.
Once the names are read, people are welcome to add in family and friends who are military and veterans. Marty Martinez expressed how it is a special event for the community.
“7,041 names and some of the names are our friends of some of our veterans who are here. They served with some of these men and so it is quite personal. It’s quite personal for myself,” he said. “I have some friends on the list as well. And so it’s a pretty solemn event but I think it’s one where our campus community really comes out to support.”
Along with reading of the names the colors are presented by the Air Force ROTC in the morning and then in the evening the colors will be retired by veterans. Taps will be played to finish the ceremony.
