Mood on campus somber with looming war

Col. Joe Trez '69, who works in the president's office, receives new e-mails each week from young alumni bound for the Persian Gulf.

Evidence of the country's preparation for war is found among all groups at The Citadel. Lt. Col. Terry Mays missed the first week of his political science classes this semester because he was in Savannah with the 1189th Transportation Terminal Brigade. As deputy brigadier commander for his reserve unit, Lt. Col. Mays was overseeing the loading of Army equipment on Navy transport vessels.

"I received a phone call on Wednesday and was ordered to report for duty in Savannah on Friday," Mays said. His unit worked around the clock for nine days to load two transport ships which are second only to aircraft carriers as the Navy's largest vessels. Citadel tac officers Maj. Dale Rivers was in Savannah with Mays.

LTC Mays three stories down on the lowest deck of the Mendonca, a Navy transport vessel.

Among the Corps, there are 121 cadets in the National Guard or in reserve units. According to the latest figures from the Commandant's Department, three cadets have been deployed and another 43 could be activated in the near future.

The Citadel goes to great lengths to accommodate employees or cadets who are called to active duty. The college gives staff members up to 45 days paid leave per year if they are deployed. Cadets and CGPS students have lenient policies on withdrawing from courses or receiving refunds when a call to duty cuts their semester short.

Lt. Col. Mays says there is probably no better place than The Citadel for getting broad support for military service. "In political science, we anticipated that I would have some short-notice deployments and so the other professors have gladly stepped in to handle classes and keep my courses going," Mays said. "The cadets understand where I am and why I am gone, and the entire campus has been fantastic."

For cadets who are watching classmates wonder when their call might come, the pride is mixed with a somber dose of realism. "The reality of serving your country hits home when it is your friend who is called up," said Cadet Major Jeff Wright, the regimental adjutant. "When you see an empty bed and know that someone in your company is now in service, it makes you understand the true meaning of duty."