Veterans Day ceremonies to be conducted at Evangel University

November 7, 2006
Contact: Paul K. Logsdon, Director of Public Relations and Publications, 865-2815 ext. 7292

Springfield, Mo. — Evangel University and the ROTC Bear Battalion, which includes both Evangel and Missouri State University cadets, will be sponsoring special Veterans Day activities on the Evangel campus, Friday, Nov. 10, and Saturday, Nov. 11.

“Veterans Day at Evangel University will hold special significance this year, in light of the loss of alumnus Shane Mahaffee in Iraq last May,” said Chuck Cox, director of Alumni Relations.

Captain Shane R.M. Mahaffee was a 1991 graduate of Evangel. He was also enrolled in Evangel’s ROTC, a partnering program of MSU’s Bear Battalion. He was the first war casualty from either school since the beginning of the war on terrorism.

Friday begins with a special flag raising ceremony at 7:50 a.m., in front of Evangel’s campus. During the 10 a.m. chapel service, there will be a color guard, and a presentation to Evangel President Robert H. Spence in memory of Captain Mahaffee. At 4:30 p.m., a flag lowering ceremony will be held.

It is anticipated that Mahaffee’s father will be present, as well as his grandmother, Mrs. Jean Martin, who retired as secretary to Evangel’s Social Sciences Department in May 2000.

Saturday at 9 a.m., in Crusader Dining Hall, Evangel and the ROTC cadets will be hosting a Veterans Day breakfast for Evangel students, alumni, faculty and staff who are military veterans, active duty or reserves. Reservations are required, and seating is limited to the first 100.

Please call (417) 865-2811 ext. 7333 for reservations. For additional information, call Ryan McHugh (816) 914-7267.

Background on Mahaffee

Captain Mahaffee was born on June 5, 1969, in Champaign, Ill. He was a civil affairs officer assigned to the 489th Civil Affairs Battalion, Knoxville, Tenn.

Captain Mahaffee died from wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device struck his vehicle during combat operations near Al Hillah, Iraq, May 5, 2006. Three other members of his team were killed in the attack. The team was attached to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division in Iraq.

A resident of Gurnee, Ill., Captain Mahaffee was a self-employed lawyer. He was raised in Alexandria, Va., and graduated from Mount Vernon High School. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Evangel University, Springfield, Mo., in 1991. In May 1994, he earned his Juris Doctor degree from Widener University School of Law, Harrisburg, Pa.

Captain Mahaffee began his military career as an ROTC cadet at Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield, Mo., and was commissioned in 1991, the 1443rd officer commissioned by the Bear Battalion.

For the next seven years, Captain Mahaffee was assigned to the 339th Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 84th Division, Waukegan, Ill., where he served as a section officer. He was voluntarily assigned to the Inactive Ready Reserve in 2000.

In February 2006, Captain Mahaffee completed the Civil Affairs Course at Fort Bragg, N.C., and deployed with the 489th Civil Affairs Battalion in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Captain Mahaffee’s military training includes Infantry Officer Basic Course, Basic Airborne Course and the Civil Affairs Course.

His awards include Army Achievement Medals with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal with the “M” device, Army Service Ribbon, and the Parachutist Badge. He is survived by his wife, Jennifer, and children, Adelia and Ethan, of Gurnee, Ill.