Wrapped around the trunks and branches of trees on the Quad at UC Davis, dozens of yellow ribbons gently move in the breeze.
The ribbons are part of a UC Davis tradition that began in 2011, started by Felipe Grimaldo, a Marine Corps veteran who was a student at UC Davis at the time. The annual display offers the campus community an opportunity to recognize and show support for active-duty service members, veterans and their families ahead of Veterans Day.
Staff members and student peer advisors from the Veterans Success Center helped organize this year's ceremony, tying ribbons around trees throughout the Quad.
Hope Medina, director of the Veterans Success Center, said it is an opportunity for the university community to recognize and honor those who have served. By leaving the ribbons on the trees for a week, the display also creates opportunities for students passing through the Quad to ask questions, learn about the tradition and understand what the yellow ribbons represent, Medina said.
Among the students helping carry on the tradition is Bella Benedetto, a peer advisor at the Veterans Success Center whose father served in the U.S. Navy. For her, the event also carries a personal meaning.
“My father was in the military for almost 30 years,” Benedetto said. “It was a big part of his life and it has impacted me greatly.”
The university will be closed tomorrow (Nov. 11) in observation of Veterans Day.
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Anila Lijo is a writer and editor for the Office of Strategic Communications, and can be reached by email.