The SCTCC Veterans' Center is now home to a full-size, fully stocked refrigerator thanks to local veteran Ron Harper from Quality Appliance Center, who donated the fridge on Feb. 28.
Harper donated the appliance to the center as a tribute to his friend and brother-in-arms Gary Nordlund. Gary served in the U.S. Marine Corps and was in Vietnam from 1967 to 1969. While serving, he rose to the rank of sergeant in the elite force recon teams and operated as a Vietnamese interpreter.
“Food is the way to people’s hearts,” said Heidi Smith, advisor of the SCTCC Student Veteran Club. “If we can get people in here for food related things like saving their lunch, warming up their food, or even grabbing free food is how we can get more veterans in here to connect with each other, and that is what we want.”
The refrigerator was stocked with food donated by faculty and staff. Students are able to visit the center and use the fridge to store their lunch or grab a free snack or beverage. The full-sized refrigerator will help encourage and accommodate more veterans to use the center, Smith said.
“This is great because it gives us a nice place to store our food and have a nice meal,” said Isaac Stumler, a student veteran at SCTCC. “It helps encourage us to congregate with other veterans and get to know each other a little better.”
