Service Souvenirs: Objects that Speak Our Stories Display
by Emily Warfield ’25, Libraries student employee
During the month of November 2024, the Syracuse University Libraries is highlighting student veterans in a display at Bird Library. Student veterans receive support from the Office of Veteran and Military Affairs (OVMA), where they are provided with academic assistance, a strong student veteran community, professional development and career services. The Students Veterans Organization (SVO) is an organization that aims to connect student veterans to each other and aid with the transition to academic life after their service. The OVMA and SVO are organizations on campus that support student veterans while they are building community and reaching their academic and career goals.
The SVO at Syracuse University is the local chapter for The Student Veterans of America (SVA). The SVA is an organization that empowers student veterans in higher education settings. It has nearly 1,600 on-campus chapters that help connect student veterans with resources, support systems and advocacy efforts for the student veteran community. The SVA aims to support student veterans nationally with programs and events to build skills outside of the classroom. The SVA works alongside the student veteran groups on campuses to ensure the success of student veterans.
At Bird Library, displays on the first floor highlight interesting topics or time periods, cultural movements and information about collections at SU. The displays are updated each month by Stephen Singer in the Learning Academic and Engagement Department with collaborations from other librarians and departments. For November and Veterans Day, Patricia Giles collaborated on this display to highlight the student veterans at Syracuse. Patricia is a Reference and Instruction Librarian at Syracuse University and liaison for student veterans. She works closely with the student veteran community on programs and events on campus and with supporting research questions and overall academic success.
This display consists of an object that each student veteran finds meaningful, a description, an image and information about their service. The objects in the display case are a mini drone, a temple book, an all-weather notebook, a maroon beret award and a St. Michael award, and an unknown object that is believed to be a tail or a spear. The objects reflect the veterans’ time in the service and showcase what they learned and the interesting activities they experienced. The descriptions and objects also highlight the wide range of travel people did while in service and their adventures along the way. The Syracuse University Libraries values its relationship with OVMA and our campus veterans. The student veteran display is an exciting display for the military connected community and an opportunity for our larger Syracuse community to learn more about student veterans’ service.