Marine Corps veteran Bill Bazzi delivers the keynote at Monday's Veteran's Day ceremony.. LTU photo / Matt Roush.

Lawrence Technological University saluted veterans in its student body and across the nation Monday during its annual Veterans Day ceremony, attended by about 100 students, faculty and staff in the Buell Building Atrium.

Philip Rollinger of Canton Township, BSME'21, president of the LTU Student Veteran Association, served as master of ceremonies.  

Navy veteran Richard Johnston, professor emeritus of electrical and computer engineering, reminded the audience that service members swear to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, not any political party. 

Bill Bazzi, a retired U.S. Marine Corps gunnery sergeant and commander of the Dearborn Allied War Veterans Council, recalled his childhood in war-torn southern Lebanon, his tough immigrant youth, and his experiences as a community college student. Then, he said with a chuckle, “To make my life easier, I joined the Marines.” 

Bazzi would serve two different hitches in the Corps, with deployments all over the globe. Today, he is a research and development engineer at Ford Motor Co., a Dearborn Heights City Council member, and vice president of the Ford Veterans Network Group. 

He urged those attending to think of an American patriot as having “no particular look, no particular job, no particular race or religion.” 

Michigan Supreme Court Justice Richard H. Bernstein also spoke, saying that while some veterans can never recover from the horrific experiences of battle, they can adapt, and use those experiences to improve society. 

The event concluded with remarks from LTU President Virinder Moudgil. Students and staff were also invited to fill out post cards to be sent to veterans thanking them for their service, and veterans enjoyed free lunch in the Blue Devil Café. The Southfield Police Honor Guard also conducted a three-volley rifle salute outside at the university’s main flagpole.