John Tyler Community College to Hold Veterans Day Ceremony
Primary Contact: Holly Walker, Public Relations Manager, 804-594-1530
Secondary Contact: Heather Busch, Creative Services Manager, 804-594-1532
CHESTER and MIDLOTHIAN, Va. – John Tyler Community College, which is becoming Brightpoint, invites the community to join the college’s faculty, staff and students at 11:00 a.m. on November 11, 2021, as they honor those who have served in the armed forces. The college’s Veterans Day Ceremony will be held outdoors on the quad between the T Building and Hamel Hall at the Midlothian Campus, which is located at 800 Charter Colony Parkway.
This year’s ceremony will feature a keynote address by retired U.S. Marine Corps Col. John Lesinski, who is chair of the Virginia Veterans Services Foundation (VVSF) Board of Trustees. He is also a trustee on the Virginia Board of Veterans Services and is the VVSF representative to the Virginia Joint Leadership Council of Veterans Services Organizations. In addition, Lesinski is an executive vice president at Colliers in the northern Shenandoah Valley where he specializes in industrial commercial real estate consulting to developer and corporate clients. Lesinski spent the majority of his 26 years of service in the Marine Corps Reserve where he served in intelligence and civil affairs units. He is a former counterintelligence team commander and holds a Master of Science in Strategic Intelligence from the Defense Intelligence Agency’s Post-Graduate Intelligence Program. He is also US co-chair of his company’s Veteran Employee Resource Group (ERG) and has been active with the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation for the past 15 years. His family also raised service dogs for Veterans Moving Forward of Dulles, Virginia.
During the ceremony, the college will recognize its faculty, staff and student veterans, as well as all veterans in attendance. Attendees will also be invited to take part in a memorial tree planting. This year’s tree is being provided by Robert Watkins and Diane Wood of Watkins Nurseries through the generous support of Carl Duffy from the Rotary Club of James River.
For directions to the college’s Midlothian Campus, visit www.brightpoint.edu/locations. For more information about the Veterans Day Ceremony, contact Lisa Kendrick, office and events specialist, at lkendrick@brightpoint.edu or 804-594-1527.
To learn more about how the college supports active members of the military, military retirees, veterans and their families, visit www.brightpoint.edu/veterans.
John Tyler Community College, which is becoming Brightpoint Community College, offers more than 75 majors that provide pathways to careers in high-demand fields; transfer opportunities to four-year colleges and universities; and industry credentials and licensures. The college, with campuses in Chester and Midlothian, online classes, and off-campus classrooms, served more than 12,790 students during the 2020-21 academic year. It also assisted approximately 5,700 learners, including more than 2,700 job seekers, through its workforce development division, Community College Workforce Alliance, a partnership between Tyler and Reynolds community colleges.
College Closed: July 4 - 7
The college will be closed July 4 – 7 for the Independence Day holiday weekend. There will be no classes, and all college offices will be closed.
While the college is closed, current students may continue registering for classes by logging into their myBrightpoint account and using Navigate or SIS. New students interested in attending Brightpoint may get started by completing their application for admission, which is available online.