Boston College dedicates Veterans' Memorial Wall

By Caitlin Castello, Town Correspondent

Before a crowd of 300 people Wednesday, Boston College unveiled a 70-foot Veteran’s Memorial Wall dedicated to the 209 alumni who died during military service.

The names of the fallen are displayed on the granite marble wall, located on the Burns Library lawn.

"The memorial will mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. For friends and classmates, we have done our duty to remember them," said Paul Delaney, who co-chaired the memorial committee, in a statement.

“Families of the deceased will draw a certain amount of pride and satisfaction, because this will ensure that the Boston College community will never forget them," said Delaney. "And, for the University community – for this generation and for many to come – it is a teaching moment that what these veterans did for all of us and for all that we have will never be forgotten."

Newton resident Mary Boudreau, came to the ceremony clutching a photograph of her brother, John M. Moriarty, who lost his life during the Battle of the Bulge, said Boston College spoksman Jack Dunn.

Retired Marine Corps General John J. Sheehan, a 1962 Boston College graduate and the only BC alumnus to earn four-star flag rank, was the keynote speaker.

The ceremony included the recitation of names of the graduates and former students who died in service to the nation during wartime, an honor guard, and the chiming of the historic Gasson Tower bells in three sets of 11, symbolizing the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month -- the exact time that the Armistice was declared ending World War I.