VINCENNES, Ind. - The public is invited to attend a Tribute to Veterans on Nov. 8, 11 a.m. (EST), at Vincennes University’s Red Skelton Performing Arts Center. Annually sponsored by the VU Support Staff Council, the Tribute to Veterans program honors veterans and those currently serving in the armed forces.  The public is encouraged to attend the program and the reception that follows.

The program will feature several speakers, military organizations, and singers, as well as video presentations.  Refreshments will be provided by Sodexo.

The Vincennes Lincoln High School ROTC will post and retire the colors.  Musical selections will be presented by the Civitan Children’s Center.

Alex Sievers, director of the VU Military Education Program, will serve as the master of ceremonies.  A keynote address will be presented by Dr. Randy Mills, retired history professor and instructor in the Education Leadership program at Oakland City University.

A 21-Gun Salute will be presented at the conclusion of the program by the All-Weather Firing Squad.  It is composed of members of the American Legion, VFW, 40 et 8, and Disabled American Veterans.

Annually sponsored by the VU Support Staff Council, the Tribute to Veterans program honors veterans and those currently serving in the armed forces.  The public is encouraged to attend the program and the reception that follows.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Dr. Randy Mills is a retired history professor and instructor in the Education Leadership program at Oakland City University. He is the author of more than 50 articles in academic history journals and of numerous books on the history of Indiana and the Midwest. His many writings have explored such topics as Indiana’s and the Midwest’s political and religious cultures, military history, labor history, Hoosier African-American rural communities, and the Underground Railroad. His most recent book, coauthored with his wife, Roxanne, is “Summer Wind: A Soldier’s Road from Indiana to Vietnam,” published by Blue River Press in 2017. Among his numerous other books are “Troubled Hero: A Medal of Honor,” “Vietnam, and the War at Home,” “Jonathan Jennings, Indiana’s First Governor,” “Honoring Those Who Have Paid the Price: Forgotten Voices from the Korean War,” “Unexpected Journey: A Marine Corp Reserve Company in the Korean War” (co-authored), and “Christ Tasted Death for Every Man: The Story of America’s Frontier General Baptists.”

Mills received the George C. Roberts Award in 2006 from the Indiana Academy of the Social Sciences for scholarly research and writing. He has also received several prestigious research and writing grants, including a research grant from the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation and two CLIO Grants from the Indiana Historical Society. This month he will receive the Dorothy Riker Hoosier Historian Award from the Indiana Historical Society for his body of scholarly work on Indiana history.

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