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Villanova Naval and Marine Units Commissioning 2003
Irene Burgo
 At
a ceremony that began with the color guard leading an academic procession,
Villanova commissioned members of its Navy and Marine ROTC Class of 2003
on May 16 in the Villanova Room of Connelly Center. Prior to the commissioning,
the Rev. Peter Donohue, O.S.A., Ph.D., ’74 A&S, chaplain for
the Naval ROTC Unit and chair of the theatre department, celebrated the
Commissioning Mass in the St. Thomas of Villanova Church.
Col. J. Brue Hulick, USMC, commanding officer of Naval Science, introduced
Gen. Anthony Zinni, USMC (Ret.) ’65, C&F, who was the keynote
speaker and the commissioning officer,. Zinni commended the newly commissioned
officers for choosing to serve their country. He reminded them that in
doing so, they bore an awesome responsibility, which began immediately
as they stepped out of Villanova’s academic environment. As they
entered military life and assumed their individual duties, he said, other
would look to them as authority figures and would trust in them and in
their decisions.
Since retiring from the Marine Corps in 2000, Zinni has been the U.S.
peace envoy in the Middle East and the special envoy to the Henri Durant
Center for Humanitarian Dialogue in Geneva (he is involved in the Indonesian
conflict peace effort). Zinni also serves on the boards of several corporations,
offering insight gained from his 40 years as a decorated military leader.
Before the commissioning ceremony drew to a close, parents and family
members pinned insignias on their sons’ and daughers’ uniforms.
Afterward, the newly commissioned officers grouped for a class photo in
the Connelly Center Cinema, and each lined up to give a formal Villanova
Naval ROTC commissioned officer’s first salute.
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