The University of Tennessee at Martin will hold its 25th Memorial Day Commemoration ceremony at 9 a.m., Friday, May 23, on the north plaza of the main campus between the Boling University Center and the Paul Meek Library. Parking will be available in the university center and library lots. The in-person event is open to the public. No live webcast or recording of the event will be available.
U.S. Rep. David Kustoff (R-TN 8th District) will be among those attending and offer a legislative welcome. Tennessee National Guard retired Maj. Gen. Mike Maloan of Martin will be the guest speaker. Maloan is the chancellor for the 27th District Chancery Court that presides over Obion and Weakley counties.
Kustoff is serving his fifth term in the U.S. House of Representatives. The University of Memphis and University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law graduate serves on the House Committee on Ways and Means, the oldest committee in the U.S. Congress. In addition to serving on the full House Committee on Ways and Means, he was also appointed to serve on the subcommittees on tax and health. The Shelby County native lives in Germantown.
Maloan is a 1972 UT Martin business administration graduate and a 1974 University of Memphis (then Memphis State) law graduate. He took a direct commission in 1988 as a first lieutenant in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps and in 2004 was promoted to the position of Staff Judge Advocate of the Tennessee National Guard, serving as the head lawyer for the Tennessee Military Department. In 2007, he was named Assistant Adjutant General-Army of the Tennessee National Guard. Maloan retired from military service in 2012.
In addition to Kustoff and Maloan, the commemoration will include several participants from the immediate area and region. The national anthem will be sung by Madison Butner, a senior music major from Union City. A university welcome will be offered by Dr. Yancy Freeman Sr., UT Martin chancellor; a 21-gun salute will be presented by the university’s Department of Public Safety and Martin Police Department; and taps will be played by Jonah Simmons, a May music graduate from Greenfield. U.S. Navy retired Chaplain Debra McGuire of Paris will offer the invocation and benediction, and Lt. Col. Bernard House, UT Martin professor of military science, will be the commemoration’s master of ceremonies.
In addition to the speakers, the program will include presentation of the colors by UT Martin Army ROTC Skyhawk Battalion cadets Elle Colson, a sophomore criminal justice major from South Fulton; Claudia Colston, a May education graduate from South Fulton; Tyler Pannell, a junior agriculture major from Atoka; and Kile Goostree, a junior history major from Huntingdon.
Memorial Day is observed annually on the last Monday in May and honors those who have died in service to the U.S. The observance was originally named Decoration Day in 1868, changed to Memorial Day in 1882 and declared a national holiday in 1971.
In case of inclement weather, the program will be moved to Watkins Auditorium located inside the Boling University Center. Contact the Office of University Relations at 731-881-7615 for additional information.
PHOTO: UT Martin will hold its annual Memorial Day Commemoration ceremony at 9 a.m., Friday, May 23, on the north plaza between the Boling University Center and the Paul Meek Library. Tennessee National Guard retired Maj. Gen. Mike Maloan will be the commemoration speaker. The event is open to the public.
