Dear Alumni,

I am writing to invite you to the dedication of a memorial to the Columbia students and alumni who have given their lives in the service of their country in the more than 250 years of the University’s existence. The dedication will take place on Friday, December 12, 2008, at 6:00 p.m. in the lobby of Butler Library.

This memorial is a product of a committee I convened in 2007 to continue discussions about a war memorial that began almost a decade ago. It included faculty, students, administrators, and alumni. It recommended that the University create a permanent memorial that would have two components. One is a bronze plaque that will hang in the lobby of Butler Library that expresses the University’s gratitude to fallen Columbians. The other is an interactive Web site that lists the individual Columbians who died in battle. This Honor Roll will be accessible through the Columbia Web site from anywhere in the world. Starting December 12, the URL will be www.warmemorial.columbia.edu.

This will be a significant event in the life of our University. I hope you will join us on December 12 to help us honor the men and women whom we are memorializing.


Sincerely,

Alan Brinkley
Provost and Allan Nevins Professor of American History

  We Remember With Enduring Gratitude—
War Memorial Unveiling
 		 
 

The Office of the Provost at Columbia University, the Columbia Alumni Association (CAA), and Columbia University Libraries cordially invite you to the unveiling of a memorial honoring alumni and students who gave their lives in service to the United States.

RSVP by December 8 to Erich H. Erving
at 212-870-2284 or ehe2001@columbia.edu.

  

Friday, December 12
6–7:30 p.m.

Butler Library
Morningside Campus
New York City

 
 
Columbia University is unveiling a war memorial that will honor those Columbians who gave their lives in service to the United States, inform current and future students of the sacrifice made by their predecessors, and illustrate the gravity of war. In doing so we hope to contribute to the knowledge so vital to democratic citizenship while underscoring that the long threads of Columbia’s history are entwined with those of the nation for which it is named.

This memorial features a mounted bronze plaque that will be located in the entrance to Butler Library and an interactive kiosk enabling access to the War Memorial forum and Web site, providing both space on campus and an avenue for appropriate content on days of special significance. In order that people near and far may connect and remember those being honored, the Web site will be available on December 12 at: www.warmemorial.columbia.edu.