CORVALLIS - A 24-hour vigil honoring American armed forces prisoners of war and those missing in action begins with a memorial ceremony at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 8, in Oregon State University's Memorial Union Quad.

Activities will include a 21-gun salute and a talk by Mike Ryan, who was a prisoner of war during World War II, said Eric Umbreit, an OSU Air Force ROTC cadet and commander of the campus' James L. Badley squadron of the Arnold Air Society, which is coordinating the event.

After opening remarks, the event will adjourn to OSU's McAlexander Fieldhouse for the dedication of a memorial rock dedicated to the nation's prisoners of war and those missing in action.

The McAlexander Fieldhouse is named after Maj. Gen. Ulysses Grant McAlexander, a World War I military hero known as the "Rock of the Marne." McAlexander served as commandant of Cadets at Oregon Agricultural College (now OSU) from 1907 to 1911 and again in 1915-16.

Following the ceremonies, the 24-hour vigil by ROTC cadets will begin in the Memorial Union Quad.

 

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Eric Umbreit, 541-737-6288

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