LSU to Honor Distinguished Military Alumni During Annual Salutes Ceremony

November 05, 2021

BATON ROUGE— 2020-2021 Inductees to the Hall of Honor for LSU Distinguished Military Alumni will be honored during the annual LSU Salutes the week of Nov. 8-13. The induction ceremony will take place during the Annual Assembly at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 13, at the LSU War Memorial on the Parade Ground. The event is open to the public. Sixth District Congressman Garret Graves will join President William F. Tate and Commandant Lt. Col. Lisa O’Neil on the reviewing team for the Pass in Review.

Inductees include the late James Durwood Bogan, lieutenant junior grade, U.S. Navy; the late James Perry Cole, colonel, U.S. Army; W. Henson Moore, of Baton Rouge, captain, U.S. Army; the late Joseph Yoshijero Nagata, staff sergeant, U.S. Army; the late William Wilson Peters, major, U.S. Army; Joseph John Besselman III, of Montgomery, Ala., lieutenant colonel, U.S. Army; Dr. James Warren Christopher, of Mandeville, La., commander, U.S. Navy; and the late Willis Beals Scudder, retired colonel, U.S. Army.

The inductees will be honored on Friday, Nov. 12 at the Commandant’s Luncheon in the LSU Student Union Ballroom and at the President’s Reception/LSU Salutes Dinner at the LSU Faculty Club. First District Congressman Steve Scalise will deliver the keynote address at the Commandant’s Luncheon, and U.S. Senator John Kennedy will be guest speaker at the dinner.

The honorees will be recognized during pre-game activities at the LSU vs. Arkansas football game at Tiger Stadium, and the Tiger Marching Band will present a “Patriotic Salute” during the half-time show. 

Also part of LSU’s Veterans Day Ceremony, on Nov. 11 at Memorial Oak Grove, a period of silence will be observed in tribute to those being honored at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington Va., which will be marking its centennial. 

LSU Salutes recognizes all veterans, in particular those who attended LSU and served in ROTC. The Hall of Honor inductees have all attended LSU and served in the military, and are selected based on their involvement with the university as well as military and community service. 
Participating in LSU Salutes events are members of the LSU Corps of Cadets, which includes LSU Army and Air Force ROTC students and Southern University Navy ROTC, which consists of LSU and Southern students. LSU Salutes is co-sponsored by the university and Cadets of the Ole War Skule.