Veterans Day

November 11 is Veterans Day. In celebration and appreciation of America's military veterans, The Association joins the nation as we honor and say "thank you" to our veterans.

The Brazos Valley Veterans Memorial board of directors will host its annual Veterans Day Program at 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 11, in the Louis L. Adam Memorial Plaza of Veterans Park and Athletic Complex. Activities include a rendition of the National Anthem and Texas Our Texas by The Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band and performances by the Texas A&M University Ross Volunteers and the Texas Aggie Band Bugler.

On campus, Class Councils, Class Councils took a different approach to 11-11 Day events this year, hoping to extend the honors given to military service-members for Veteran’s Day from a single day into a year-round awareness initiative. There will present a flag display and put flags in the ground like previous years, "But we also want to show support to specifically the Aggie veterans throughout the year and just raise this money for an awareness for the Aggie Ring fund and show how we can give just a small token of our gratitude back to the veterans that served for us,” said Elizabeth Hoelscher, business administration sophomore and Class Councils public relations committee chair, according to reporting done by The Battalion. An auction to raise money for Aggie Rings for veterans will be held in the spring. Read more at thebatt.com.

Also on Nov. 11, a second viewing of Aggies Go To War from Bastogne, Belgium, will be shown at Premiere Cinema in Bryan at 6:30 p.m. The video, first shown on Nov. 4 in Rudder Theater, commemorates the 70th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge and retells the stories of Aggie legends like James Earl Rudder and Joe Routt. There is no charge for admission into the event, but tickets must be reserved by calling Bryan Broadcasting at (979) 695-9595.

The Texas A&M University School of Law is hosting its veteran graduates, students and faculty to a Veterans Day Celebration Lunch on Nov. 11. They also spotlighted some of their student veterans on law.tamu.edu.

Saturday is Military Appreciation Day at Kyle Field when the Aggies take on the Missouri Tigers. All active and retired military receive a special ticket price of $30. 

Texas A&M was recently formally designated a “Purple Heart University,” signifying its recognition and honor of veterans who were wounded in combat while serving their country and are now pursuing their college careers in Aggieland. A public acknowledgement of the designation is planned during campus events recognizing Veteran’s Day and Veteran’s Week. Read more about this distinction at tamutimes.tamu.edu.

Texas A&M University was also ranked first in the nation for return on investment (ROI) for veterans by BestValueSchools.com,
a website designed to help students get the most value in a college or graduate degree. The Best Value Schools website lists the return on investment for Texas A&M veterans at $1.06 million within a 30-year average. The editors say “Texas A&M is one of the most supportive colleges for veterans in the United States. The school has two major offices designed to support veterans, and their unique situation and needs. The Veterans Services Office exists to help veterans and their children take advantage of every financial aid option available to them. The Veterans Resource and Support Center is there to help veterans connect with each other and important resources and associations.”

Texas A&M has a long and mutually beneficial relationship with the U.S. Armed Forces. Texas Aggie magazine featured this relationship in 2010; read the full feature titled "Farmers Fight" on AggieNetwork.com.