Student Veterans Organization to host American Legion charter ceremony

27th May 2014

NEW ALBANY, Ind. (May 27, 2014) – The Student Veterans Organization (SVO) at Indiana University Southeast is sponsoring the charter of an American Legion post on campus, Ashton L.M. Goodman Post 109.

Post 109 is named in honor of fallen United States Air Force Senior Airman, Ashton L.M. Goodman, a vehicle operator dispatcher, who was killed in action of wounds sustained by an improvised explosive device on May 26, 2009, while serving in Operation Enduring Freedom at Bagram Airfield, the largest U.S. military base in Afghanistan. Goodman’s family, who live in Indianapolis, will attend the charter ceremony.

The institution of the Post is historic for a number of reasons. Ashton L.M. Goodman Post 109 will be the first American Legion Post in Indiana to be named after a female fallen soldier, and one of the only Posts in the state with women in command. It is also the only American Legion Post sponsored by IU Southeast.

The charter ceremony will take place on Tuesday, May 27, at 6:30 p.m. in the Activities Building gymnasium at IU Southeast. During the ceremony, Zoë Selena Rea, current IU Southeast SVO President, will be sworn in as commander of American Legion Ashton L.M. Goodman Post 109. The event will also serve as a fundraiser for the SVO, hoping to collect enough donations to fund events for the 2014-2015 academic year.

The Honorable Maria D. Granger, the first Judge to preside over Floyd County Superior Court 3, and Supervising Judge of the Veterans Court, will speak at the ceremony Tuesday evening, sharing words of encouragement and emphasizing the importance of acknowledging veterans in the community.

Rea sees the instillation of Ashton L.M. Goodman Post 109 as a great opportunity, and hopes to see the SVO and Post membership grow in coming years.

“I am very, very excited about this opportunity,” Rea said. “Though this organization is in its infancy stage, I am excited to be able to provide such a direct resource to the military in our community. Through this opportunity, I have met so many supporters of the military and hope to be able to recruit more JROTC high school students to IU Southeast, bringing an ROTC office to campus, growing our program and encouraging academics for veteran students.”

This event is free to attend and open to the public.

For more information about the Student Veterans Organization or American Legion Ashton L.M. Goodman Post 109, contact IU Southeast SVO President, Zoë Selena Rea at studentveteransorganizationatius@yahoo.com.

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