World War II Veterans’ Conference Room Dedicated

by Myra Saturen

Fully 62 years have passed since the end of World War II.

“Baby Boomers grew up with World War II, through the memories of their parents,” said Steve Hovey, president of Corporate Environments. But many young people—separated from the war by two or more generations--know little about the global conflict, Hovey added.

Thanks to Hovey, students at Northampton Community College’s Main Campus will be reminded of the war in which 60 million soldier and civilian lives were lost every time they walk through the lobby in the College Center. The conference room located on the north side of the lobby was dedicated to the veterans of World War II on June 6, 2007, the 63rd anniversary of the Allies’ D-Day invasion of Normandy. Hovey donated the equipment that furnishes the room.

Hovey was given the opportunity to name the room because he donated the handsome furnishings that make it a first-class meeting room for college and community groups. Initially he felt stymied. Nevertheless, he waited for the right moment, and it suddenly came to him; his daughter Megan had returned from study abroad, where she had seen and been profoundly affected by the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp in Germany. Around the same time, a friend’s son saw the film Flags of Our Fathers, about the battle of Iwo Jima, and was struck by the sacrifice and bravery of the soldiers. An idea came to Hovey: the conference room would be named and dedicated to honor the veterans of World War II.

A veteran of that war, United States Air Force Major Nathan Kline (retired and now president of the Lehigh Valley Military Affairs Council and a member of Comrades in Arms of the Lehigh Valley) attended the dedication. He recalled the 65 missions he flew, from April 1943 to 1945, perilously wedged between Allied war planes and German anti-aircraft. He remembers the longest armada in history, from the English to Normandy coasts, spanning below him. Kline, a bombardier navigator, was just eighteen and nineteen years old.

“It was a war to save humanity.” Kline said. “And men and women of the Lehigh Valley fought in it valiantly.” In addition to the World War II conference room, a series of lectures at NCC will further educate people about the war.

Kline says he believes the Greatest Generation includes not only World War II veterans, but also soldiers in fighting troops everywhere and at all times.

After Hovey and Kline’s remarks, the time came to unveil the World War II Veterans’ Conference Room. Cutting a blue ribbon and tearing from the window an enormous white sheet of paper, NCC President Arthur Scott and Hovey revealed the room.

Located right off the lobby, the 1,200 square foot room has state-of-the art electronics, seating for 24, and exquisitely crafted furniture. A 25-foot-long conference table, made of English sycamore wood, with a granite insert that matches wall tiles, is the largest on campus. The trim is clear maple, as is the wall paneling. Wired into the table are connections for laptops and conference phones. The room also has a built-in, automatically retracting projector and screen that is hidden above the multi-level ceiling; a white board; multi-level lights; automatic shades; and a stereo sound system. Turning classrooms into this sophisticated, high-tech conference room entailed demolition of ceilings, walls and carpets and modification of the cooling, electrical, phone, and audiovisual systems.

The room adds utility and beauty to our campus, while honoring the memory of courageous men and women.