The newly formed Veterans Club hosted its first on-campus event at the Multicultural Center where they welcomed veterans and veteran-affiliated students. Charles Johnson, the Veterans Resource Center Lead, was in attendance overseeing the event.
Katie Hirahoka, the Veterans Club president, and Alia Yollis, the vice president, spoke of their excitement at getting the opportunity to host their first event on campus.
The event—which provided free meals, snacks, drinks and goodie bags to the veterans in attendance—gave the colleges’ veterans a safe space where they can be expressive about their experiences.
The Veteran’s Welcome & May Day event also provided an environment where they were able to feel at ease being among other people who can understand what they had gone through while serving, especially ones that are closer to their age. Many of the attendees enjoyed the free popcorn and meals provided by the club while they sat to enjoy the screening of Top Gun together.
Yollis is optimistic with the opportunities they have in putting together more events.
“The biggest challenge is we have nothing to go off of,” said Yollis. “Our main goal is to let our veterans have resources besides school. It is often hard to ask for help, so just having it there makes it better.”
Yollis also mentioned how these safe spaces for veterans are often filled with older veterans, so it can sometimes be intimidating and difficult for younger veterans to relate. This is where she and Hirahoka saw the issue and decided to change the narrative for others who are in their same shoes.
“When I first got out, I was going to go out to veterans events places, but it was always older vets, especially men,” Yollis said.
Being a woman who served often leaves them feeling isolated, so it’s another reason why they pushed for the formation of the Veterans Club to give women who served another place where they won’t have to feel like they are alone.
“[Veterans need to] find support in things that are outside of school, we already have the Veterans Resource Center, so providing things outside of what they offer is our goal,” said Hirahoka. “We’re fairly new, but the purpose of this event is to let students know we are here.”
When planning for events, Johnson hopes for a collaborative experience between veteran students and students on campus.
“We wanted to plan an event that would bring veterans together, where they could sit around in fellowship and feel a part of the campus,” he said.
On May 22, the Veterans Club will be hosting another event in the Library and Learning Crossroads Courtyard area.
“We’re going to have a flag ceremony outside here, in the courtyard in this area—the LLC—where we celebrate for the memorial day service,” Johnson said.
Alfonso Vargas contributed to this story.