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er 22,199
Monday • September 22, 1997
Lifestyles
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American Pride
Texas A&M Veterans Association reminds Aggies of their military heritage
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By Michelle Voss
Staff writer
h, say does that Star-Spangled Ban
ner yet wave?”
The American flag did not hang in
the Memorial Student Center until the Texas
A&M Veterans Association took matters into
their own hands.
“Two years ago, some of the original officers
of the Veterans Association came into the MSC
to have their pictures taken in front of the Unit
ed States and Texas State flags. After a tour of
the whole building, they could not find them,”
said Todd Milburn, president of the Veterans
Association and veteran of the United States
Marine Corps.
On Veterans Day in 1995, the association
fixed the oversight and hung the two flags in
the MSC Flagroom.
“Unto this day, nobody knows if the flags were
here in the beginning, or what happened to
them if they were,” Milburn said. “They’re now
posted proudly.”
One of the goals of the organization is to help
veterans make the transition from military life to
student life, to provide unity, said Terry Dahlke,
secretary of the Veterans Association.
“We don’t sit around and talk about the politics
of conflict,” he said. “We’re beyond that, really.”
Milburn said considering A&M’s history of mil
itary tradition, it is actually odd and perplexing that
the MSC had no American or Texas flags.
“We’re the whole reason why this building is
here,” said Laura Busch, a United States Marine
Corps veteran.
Aggies know they should remove their hats in
the MSC and should not step on the grass sur
rounding the building. Yet, the reason is some
times forgotten. Established two years ago, the
Texas A&M Veterans Association is here to help
students remember.
“We’ve been approached by MSC directors to
become an MSC recognized organization, and
‘/oo
RYAN ROGERS/The Battalion
Terry Dahlke, Todd Milburn and Laura Busch stand in front of the flags in the MSC Flagroom. They are
all members of the Texas A&M Veterans Association.
we have strong interest in that area,” Milburn
said. “The Memorial Student Center is for the Ag
gie veterans who have gone to war and died for
our country, and we want to be involved in that.”
Milburn said many veterans arrive on cam
pus and feel lost.
‘“Gee, I’m already older than most of the people
who are graduating, and I just sortafeel out of place.
Where do I need to go?”’ Milburn said. ‘“This is a big
university! We’re used to being on bases where units
take care of us.’”
In an effort to remind Aggies of their military
heritage, the Veterans Association’s continuing
project this year is the addition of the five branch
flags of the armed forces to the MSC Flagroom.
The estimated cost of hanging the five branch
flags is $7,000, and the Veterans Association is
seeking help to raise the funds.
“We’ve spoken with some former Ags that
have looked into our project as a gift to the Uni
versity,” said Laura Busch, treasurer of the Veter
ans Association. “We’re also planning some fund
raisers like a bike-a-thon. Mainly, just getting
people to know about us will help raise money.”
Dues to join the association are $ 15 for the se
mester or $30 for the year, according to Busch.
“A portion of the dues will go towards a schol
arship fund we’re establishing for the veterans
here at A&M,” Busch said.
“We’re all students at Texas A&M, we’re all
working towards receiving some type of degree
and we’re spread out all over the University,”
Milburn said. “But, we all have two common
bonds: We’re older than the average student
and we’ve all been in the military.”
“It’s a camaraderie thing that you don’t have
with someone sitting next to you in class, because
they don’t understand what you’ve been through,”
Busch said. “They don’t get your boot camp jokes.”
“In the Marines, we had that philosophy,
‘Once a Marine, always a Marine,”’ Milburn said.
“Here at A&M, we also have that, ‘Once an Aggie,
always an Aggie.’ There’s that network there, and
the Veterans Association is just an additional net
work,” said Milburn.
Milburn said the Veterans Association esti
mates 700 veterans attend Texas A&M and they
are hoping to reach all of them.
“Our main focus in the association is getting
through an education program and moving on
with our lives,” he said.
Loving and leaving:
Students discuss why
breaking up is hard to do
By Travis Irby
Staff writer
T he great breakup. The grand fi
nale. It is a common theme to
anyone who has ever felt their
heart beat for another.
“A boyfriend dumped me be
cause he said God told him to,” said
Sandy Strickland, a sophomore ac
counting major.
“I bought Eric Clapton tickets for
my ex-girlfriend, and I was rewarded
with her going out wkh an ex
boyfriend,” senior biology major E.
Allen Mantanona said. “I asked why,
and she replied, ‘S— happens.’”
“Breaking up is hard to do,” goes
the famous tune, and for many peo
ple it is true. Anyone who has been in
a serious relationship can probably
relate to the tales of woe born of the
demise of such pairings. Most peo
ple leam to move on after the end of
a serious relationship, but some peo
ple have a much harder time.
The combination of school stress
with relationship stress can affect
everything from personal health to
grades.
Dr. Brian Williams, a psychologist
with Student Counseling Services,
said there can be many unhealthy re
actions to a breakup.
“Depression is a very common
side effect of the end of a serious re
lationship,” Williams said. “Someone
may sleep a lot more or less, eating
patterns might change — they just
end up in a funk.”
Cynthia Quick, a psychological
intern with Student Counseling Ser
vices, said the behaviors can go too
far.
“Some students may react by go
ing out partying and drinking an ex
treme amount; some might just
sleep all the time and miss class,”
Quick said.
Breaking up is not easy for even
those with the best of mental health,
after someone has paid a certain
emotional price to their significant
other. Leaving the relationship can
result in a serious void. Quick said
the void might be the hardest part for
a person to overcome.
“Once a person leaves a longtime
relationship, they find most of their
support net was tied up in the rela
tionship,” Quick said.
Williams and Quick said the
biggest challenges facing someone
leaving a serious romance is estab
lishing a social existence outside of
the former boyfriend or girlfriend. It
can be difficult if a circle of friends is
shared. A person must figure out
how to deal with their former love.
“Many people tend to fall into the
same patterns of choosing a rela
tionship,” Quick said. “So to help bet
ter deal with a breakup, they need
recognize and change those pat
terns.”
Williams said Student Counsel
ing Services offers help to those who
need it.
“We offer a weekly focus group,
meeting on Monday afternoons,”
Williams said. “It is designed to help
talk about issues associated with
breakups and many students find it
very helpful.”
Williams said there is a limit of
eight allowed in the group, but open
ings are still available.
One of die biggest problems with
students who suffer at the hands of
the breakup is they do not realize the
effect it has on them.
“Many students will come af
ter making an ‘F’ on a test won
dering what is wrong,” Williams
said. “Then when you ask them
what is going on in their life, and
they casually mention, ‘Oh, my
girlfriend or boyfriend just broke
up with me,’ it just sets off a
warning light.”
Please see Breakups on Page 4.
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