The gift continues a 30-year relationship connecting student veterans with resources and community
For 30 years, generations of local veterans have helped ensure CMU and CMU Tech student veterans know they have someone in their corner. That relationship continued recently in the Len Ladue Veterans Lounge, where student veterans gathered with members of Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 3981 and Auxiliary 3981 for pizza, conversation and the signing of a new scholarship agreement.
During the gathering, VFW Post 3981 and Auxiliary 3981 gave $50,000 to the Colorado Mesa University Foundation to provide scholarships for veterans attending CMU and CMU Tech.
The VFW and CMU also signed a new memorandum of understanding for the VFW Post and Auxiliary Memorial Scholarship, which supports honorably discharged veterans pursuing their education at CMU or CMU Tech. Under the new agreement, the Post has committed to funding three scholarships each year, with a minimum award of $1,000 each.
For VFW Post Commander Len Ladue, the scholarship is one part of a broader commitment to student veterans.
“I think it's important for today's veterans to know that their service is appreciated by the previous veteran generation,” said Ladue. “A lot of our VFW Post members are Vietnam War veterans, and we know what it's like not to have that support.”
The scholarship endowment was established in June 1996, when Ladue said the majority of Post members were World War II veterans. Now, a new generation of VFW members is continuing what they started.
“The members recognized in 1996 that it was important to support our student veterans and to ensure that this support would last for several lifetimes,” said Ladue.
Today, most of the Post’s current members are Vietnam veterans, and Ladue said they are honored to continue that work while making sure the support remains meaningful for current student veterans.
The support has taken many forms over the years. Ladue said they’ve helped student veterans facing financial hardships with car repairs, utility bills, gas, bus passes, food and clothing. Other times, the support can be something as simple as making time for a cup of coffee or a conversation.
The location of the gathering also carried some history of its own.
In 2022, CMU named the veterans lounge in Houston Hall the Len Ladue Veterans Lounge in recognition of Ladue’s years of support for student veterans at CMU and veterans across the Western Slope.
Veterans Benefits and Services Coordinator John Peresta sees the impact of Len and the VFW’s involvement firsthand.
“The VFW plays an important role in supporting veterans pursuing higher education by providing essential resources such as housing assistance, food outreach, snacks for students, scholarships and funds that help reduce financial barriers and promote their success in college,” Peresta said.
For senior Aaron Lopez, having people around who understand the experience of military service has been an important part of adjusting to college. Lopez served eight years in the Army as an airborne infantryman, with assignments in Alaska and North Carolina and deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. After moving to Grand Junction, he enrolled at CMU, where he is now majoring in psychology and minoring in philosophy.
Even though Lopez had taken college courses while serving in the Army, returning to school in a traditional college setting was different.
“It’s been quite an adjustment to how different the environments are,” Lopez said.
Ladue said the transition can also come with the challenge of finding a new sense of community.
“While in the military, especially when you are deployed, your family kind of becomes the men and women in your unit. When you leave the military, it sometimes becomes a little challenging to find where you fit in, whether it be at college or the community at large,” Ladue said.
Having other veterans nearby helped Lopez.
“Just being able to have people who can relate and get you to the right place is such a big deal. To have people around to pat you on the back, get you to the right place and make sure you're doing the right thing is one of the biggest, most helpful things you can have on campus,” said Lopez.
The VFW encourages student veterans to get involved with the CMU Student Veterans Association or other campus and community organizations where they can find people with shared interests.
“We want our veterans to enjoy their time at school, and we don't want them to become isolated,” Ladue said.
Lopez has seen Ladue’s impact in the way he shows up for all local veterans.
“He is a fantastic human being. He and his wife Judy are the most supportive people to all veterans in the entire Valley,” said Lopez.
The thing that stands out most for him is the fact that support from the VFW and Student Veterans Association often arrives without anyone having to ask for it.
“We don't know what we'd do without them. It's amazing how much support they give us, even though we never ask for it. They're just always there,” said Lopez.
Ladue wants student veterans to know that support is there whenever they need it.
“We want every student veteran who walks into the Veterans Lounge at CMU to know that we appreciate their service to our country,” said Ladue.
30 years after an earlier generation of VFW members established the scholarship, the support continues, with one generation of veterans helping the next find their place on campus.
Western Slope VFW Post 3981 invites veterans to join them for free coffee and doughnuts every Wednesday morning at the Western Region One Source, 482 28 Road in Grand Junction. Post 3981 also covers annual VFW membership dues for eligible veterans while they are students at CMU or CMU Tech.
To learn more about the Student Veterans Association, visit coloradomesa.edu/veterans/student-veterans-association.
Want to support student veterans? Visit SupportingCMU.org.