The University of
Pittsburgh will once again honor American troops who have died in operations in
Iraq and Afghanistan by participating in the Remembrance Day National Roll Call
from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. November 12 in the lower lounge of the William Pitt Union,
3959 Fifth Ave., Oakland.
The opening ceremony will take place from 9 to 10 a.m., followed by the reading
throughout the day of names of servicemen and women who died while serving our
nation in those two wars. There will be a moment of silence at 2 p.m. This
marks the second year Pitt has participated in the national event.
Also, throughout the day on Friday, November 9, and Monday, November 12, members of the
University’s Student Veteran Association and Pitt’s Office of Veterans
Services, as well as other volunteers, will be collecting money for the Wounded
Warriors and Veterans Education Assistance Fund, which was developed to assist
wounded veterans and spouses and children of fallen soldiers with educational
expenses not covered by the military or by other benefits. For information
about the Roll Call or the Wounded Warrior and Veterans Education Assistance
Fund, contact Pitt’s Office of Veterans Services at 412-624-3213 or visit the Office of Veterans Services Web site.
In addition, to honor veterans of wars both present and past, Pitt’s Department
of Theatre Arts is presenting a free reading of the play at 7 p.m. November 12 in
the Henry Heymann Theatre at the Stephen Foster Memorial, Forbes Avenue and
Bigelow Boulevard, Oakland. Spark is about three sisters living in the
United States who have been caught up in the aftermath of a recent war. A
contemporary story about faith, love, trauma, and healing, Spark
explores what happens when the soldiers come home. Playwright Caridad Svich
will read, in a presentation directed by theatre arts faculty member Lisa
Jackson-Schebetta; a postreading talkback session will follow. NoPassport
theatre alliance and press is presenting a series of free readings of Spark
in collaboration with multiple venues throughout the United States and abroad
in November.
And, on November 18, Pitt Repertory Theatre will present a staged reading of Elliot:
A Soldier’s Fugue, written by Quiara Allegria Hudes and directed by
Christiana Molldrem Harkulich. The play traces the legacy of war through three
generations of a Puerto Rican family, and focuses on Elliot, 19, a wounded
hometown hero back from service in Iraq.