Veterans find camaraderie

Similarities, service brings military students together

is like. I have been building better, stronger bonds, and it’s getting me on the right track to where I want to go in life. I feel like these guys are helping me develop all the right tools,” club member and criminal justice major Eric Gonzalez said.

junction between the administration and faculty has made many of the campus’ events possible.

“There are a lot of things that might not have happened around here if he was not there to help us get

According to Kiekel, an event last week intended to raise a discussion about cultural responsiveness and involvement had been organized, but did not have a speaker. Peters reached out to a person he knows and made all

-Earic Peters Vice President of Student Services

political science Denise Robb.

“I’ve been working with Earic on the Town Hall. He’s the reason it got greenlighted,” Robb said. “He really took it and ran with it.”

Robb and Peters met every two weeks in the months leading up to the event, and she said his enthusiasm and involvement were critical in its success.

“He gets excited about the campus and the students’ success. That just doesn’t happen very often, and I can relate to that,” Robb said. “He’s got that energy.”

Robb’s words were echoed by Kiekel, who said Peters’ personality is a huge part of his effectiveness as a leader in student success.

From bunkers to study groups, the Student Veterans of America Club is showing that although the transition from military life to civilian life is hard, they are here to help.

Your drill sergeant has become your professor, the person standing next to you is no longer the person you can intrust your life to and you traded in your boots for books. The switch back to civilian life from one in the military is hard to say the least, but the Student Veterans of America Club is doing its best to ensure that transition is as easy as possible.

Christopher

Mulrooney, an Army veteran, started the Student Veterans of America Club last semester after realizing that the one on campus had been inactive for a number of years.

“Four years ago I went to Santa Monica College and they started a Veterans Club and created a veterans center. I came here last semester in the fall and saw that there was no club and decided as a veteran, I should get a veterans club started on this campus,” Mulrooney said.

“The purpose of the club is to have vets have a place to belong, to be with your fellow vets because who else is going to understand what you have been through as a veteran than other vets,” Vice President Mulrooney said.

The Student Veterans of America Club started last semester but has already become a family and the importance of the club is not understated.

“Once I came to Pierce and joined the Veterans Club, I actually started to experience more what college life through some of the administrative processes and lend his support and explain what’s going on with these projects to the president. He’s our conduit to senior staff,” she said.

The club is not only a support group, but also a place for veterans to reach out for jobs and guidance. One of the hardest parts of the transition is figuring out what to do with your life when you come back from war.

“It’s building a community for the veterans because when we get out of the service we are sort of a little lost because we don’t really fit into the normal civilian world. The fact that we are meeting each other with similar experiences and backgrounds also really helps. It’s also a great network for meeting people, finding jobs, and helping each other in the places we are weakest,” Gonzalez said.

Club President Alexis Miguel, who served four years active duty in the Marine Corps and is now in his third year of the reserves, knows all about the struggles facing veterans and believes in the club wholeheartedly.

“I take this club very personally. There are a lot of statistics coming out and it’s unfortunate, but the suicide rate amongst the veteran population is quite high and I think clubs like this and organizations are geared to collecting all these veterans and letting them know everything is cool. Letting them know there is a safe place for them just to be themselves and share whatever they have to, and I think this club does that here for the student body at Pierce’” Miguel said.

John Johnson, a 21-year veteran of the Marine Corps, believes the club is making an impact on some veterans by helping them find jobs.

“The club is great because it has more networking for jobs and we are taking care of each other. Kind of like what we did in the service,” Johnson said.

“He’s just been a wonderful advocate in that way.” the arrangements for them to come to the event and speak on the issue.

“He was absolutely instrumental in putting that together,” Kiekel said.

Peters was also a key figure in the success of the May 1 Town Hall event, organized by associate professor of

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“He’s just a really, really, really pleasant person to work with. Well informed in the areas of student success. Great vision, but also just a really gregarious, welcoming person, which is really nice,” Kiekel said. “It’s a great quality for anybody to have, and it’s a wonderful quality for an administrator to have.”