Author: Justin Saffell

The Vietnam Center and Archive is proud to present the final speaker in our 2011 Guest Lecture Series, Mr. Dave Carey, on November 10th at 7:00pm in the Allen Theatre of the Texas Tech Student Union Building.  The lecture is free and open to the public.

Dave Carey graduated from the US Naval Academy and served as a carrier based pilot in Vietnam.  Carey was shot down during one of his missions and he spent five and a half years as a prisoner of war in Hanoi.  After returning from Vietnam, he held several command positions including a position as the Director of the Navy’s Leadership and Management Training Program.  He earned the Legion of Merit, five Bronze Stars, two Meritorious Service Medals, the Purple Heart, eight Air Medals and the Navy Commendation Medal during his service. 

An invitation-only reception with Mr. Carey for the Friends of the Vietnam Center will be held from 6:00-6:45pm in the Formby Room of the Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library on the day of the lecture.

The mission of the Vietnam Center and Archive Guest Lecture Series is to enrich the intellectual and cultural life of students, faculty, and the community at large by bringing distinguished individuals to campus for presentations on specific aspects of the Vietnam War, its lasting impact on American politics, society and culture, and on contemporary issues in Southeast Asia.

This lecture series is funded in part by a generous grant from the Helen Jones Foundation.  For more information on the 2011 VNCA Guest Lecture Series see http://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/GLS, or contact Mary Saffell at 806-742-9010 or mary.saffell@ttu.edu.

The lecture series will continue in 2012 with four speakers.

The Vietnam Center and Archive is pleased to announce that thanks to a generous grant from the Helen Jones Foundation, our successful Guest Lecture Series will continue in 2012 with four speakers (dates are tentative):

March 2012 – Brig. General Tom Draude, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Marine Corps University Foundation, Draude served for over 30 years in the US Marine Corps, including three tours in Vietnam.  He later commanded Marine Security Guards in Europe and the Fifth Marine Regiment, and served as the Assistant Division Commander of the First Marine Division during Desert Shield and Desert Storm.  He received two Distinguished Service Medals and ten personal awards for combat, including two Silver Stars and the Purple Heart.

April 2012 – Dr. Raymond Scurfield, professor of social work at the University of Southern Mississippi Gulf Coast, is an expert in PTSD.  He served as an Army officer on a psychiatric team in Vietnam from 1968-69, and has spent three decades working with hundreds of combat veterans of the Vietnam War and other conflicts.  Scurfield is the author of numerous books and articles on the effects of PTSD.

October 2012 – Dick Rutan served in the Air Force in Vietnam, flying over 325 combat missions.  Following his time in the military, Rutan continued his aviation career, earning many honors, breaking many world records, and being inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame.  In 1986, he was the first person to fly nonstop around the globe without refueling.  He received the Presidential Citizen’s Medal of Honor, and his plane “Voyager” now hangs in the Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum.

November 2012 – Rocky Bleier, a star football player at Notre Dame, was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1968.  He also received a US Army draft notice that year.  Leaving the NFL, Bleier served in Vietnam with the 196th Light Infantry Brigade.  Wounded when his platoon was ambushed, doctors told Bleier he would never play football again.  With the support of Steelers owner Art Rooney, his coach and teammates, Bleier trained for two years and eventually became a star running back for the Steelers during their four Super Bowl wins in the 1970s.

 More information about dates and times will be posted as they become available.

 We would also like to remind you that our 2011 series continues on October 13th with Dr. Kara Dixon Vuic, followed by Dave Carey on November 10th.

 For more information about the Guest Lecture Series, visit www.vietnam.ttu.edu/gls