This week saw the return of 55 plaques around Simpson Drill Field that commemorate the 55 Aggies who died in World War I.
The plaques, which were removed approximately a decade ago due to corrosion, were reinstalled Monday after efforts made by the Student Government Association.
Reid Joseph, 2014 student body president and industrial distribution senior, said he feels the timing of the plaques’ installment is ideal.
“What a fitting day, on Veterans Day, to have them unveiled and brought back to campus,” Joseph said.
Joseph said the idea originated from Matthew Keller, former SGA vice president of student services and Class of 2013, and Collin Kruger, accounting junior and vice president of student services.
tried to find where the plaques were,” said Keller, who is now in the Army. “It turned out that they had been taken down due to some issues with their appearance.”
Keller said the plaques were removed because they looked rusty and unkempt, and SGA was able to locate them in the Sanders Corps Center.
Keller said after finding the plaques, SGA decided to contact SSC, the company to which A&M outsources groundskeeping and custodial work.
“We linked up with a gentleman from the SSC, and so Collin and I talked to him about how we could do it and so he said, ‘We have a little bit of money, but we were hoping you guys could help us out with that as well,’ since he was a former student, Class of ’86 I think it was,” Keller said.
Kruger said he and six to 10 other members of Traditions Council spent about two to three weeks over the summer sanding and refurbishing 50 of the plaques. The other five were broken and had to be reordered.
Half the money to refurbish the plaques came from the $50,000 SGA allocates each year, Joseph said. A funding bill was passed through Student Senate for the plaque allocation.
Graham D. Luhn, Class of 1912, is one of the 55 Aggies who died in World War I and is honored with a plaque near Simpson Drill Field.
Photo by Allison Bradshaw.
Keller said he thought it was important these plaques get reinstalled because they represent the military tradition on which A&M was built.
“We felt it was important because of the history of Texas A&M,” Keller said. “Our military presence has meant a lot to this school and the traditions we hold dear and values that we really strive to represent in our daily lives. I think a lot of those traditions are attributed to our military past and history and I think we should keep those traditions alive.”
Kruger said a rededication ceremony is being planned.