Angelo State University

A team of seven Angelo State University history students recently created a new exhibit for San Angelo's Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 1815 that honors local veterans and their military service. The "VFW Warrior Gallery" showcases more than 300 artifacts and memorabilia items related to veterans' service in various military conflicts, including World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Gulf War. It is now a permanent feature at the local VFW Post located at 125 S. Browning St. The ASU students began the project in March 2025 by familiarizing themselves with the VFW Post and its collections of memorabilia. They then worked evenings and weekends as they inventoried and researched all the items and verified their historical relevance, sourced new items from local veterans, cleaned existing display cases and added new cases, and set up all the exhibits. The students also interviewed local VFW members about their military service, and those recorded interviews will be featured in a future video display to complement the exhibits. VFW Post 1815 hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new exhibits on July 1, followed by a community open house to introduce the exhibits to the public on July 10. The project has received both local and national media coverage. See more details at angelo.edu/news.

Olivia Hessock of Abilene, a freshman management major at Angelo State University, has been named the 2020-21 Girl Scout of the Year by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6873 in Abilene. Hessock's latest ongoing service project could last for quite a while. Assisted by her church, Zion Lutheran, and other helpers, she taught children at All God's Children after-school day care to construct tied fleece blankets for children in Child Protective Services. See the full story on the Abilene Reporter-News website.