Citrus College hosts ceremony to honor veterans
Held every year during the week of Veterans Day, Saluting Our Veterans continues Citrus College's long history of recognizing veterans within the community. On Nov. 8, the college, in partnership with Azusa Pacific University (APU) and the cities of Azusa and Glendora, hosted this special event for the 12th year in a row.
The ceremony began with a prelude of patriotic music performed by the Gladstone High School marching band. Following the performance, Citrus Singers Christian Blass, Israel Lacy and Christian Pineda performed the national anthem. After a moment of silence for fallen veterans, the Valley Veterans Memorial Team conducted a flag-folding ceremony accompanied by a three-volley salute.
Dr. Martha McDonald, the vice president of student services at Citrus College and a Marine, introduced four veteran honorees: U.S. Army Capt. Christopher R. Abalo, Glendora's honoree; U.S. Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Edward Alvarez, Azusa's honoree; U.S. Navy Seaman Walter Seegers, Citrus College's honoree; and U.S. Navy Capt. Janet E. Wessels, APU's honoree.
Special guests this year included Senator Anthony Portantino and Assemblymember Blanca E. Rubio, as well as an entire fourth grade class from Powell Elementary School in Azusa. Their teacher, Patty Abalo, is Capt. Abalo's mother. She and Principal Jennifer Wiebe walked the students to Citrus College in order to pay tribute to her son.
U.S. Army veteran Celia Alvarado, a former Citrus College student and current APU student, and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Martin Hernandez Barajas, a current Citrus College and APU student, shared their stories of success with the audience. The event concluded with Citrus College's musical group Night Shift performing "God Bless the USA."
"At Citrus College, we are committed to recognizing both student veterans and veterans from the community," said the college superintendent/president of Citrus College. "Thank you for your service, courage and commitment to our country."
This article originally appeared in the December 2017 edition of the Citrus View.