U.S. Marine Corps’ 239th birthday celebration set for Nov. 10
LAWRENCE — Lawton Nuss, Chief Justice of the Kansas Supreme Court, will be the guest of honor at the 2014 Marine Corps Birthday celebration at the Dole Institute of Politics.
The event will be 10:30 a.m. Monday, Nov. 10, at the University of Kansas Dole Institute of Politics. Doors open at 10 a.m.
Nuss, a native of Salina, attended KU on a Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps scholarship and upon graduation was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Marine Corps. After four years of service, he left the Marines and enrolled in law school. He graduated from KU’s School of Law in 1982.
Mike Denning, a retired Marine Corps colonel who directs KU’s Office of Graduate Military Programs, will preside over the event. Denning said that as they do every year, the Marines will celebrate its proud tradition and heritage.
“2014 marks the 24th year that the city of Lawrence and members from KU have gathered together to celebrate the Marine Corps’ birthday,” Denning said. “What started in 1991 has continued to grow each year with the addition of guests of honor, the Lawrence High School Chorale and the support from the Dole Institute of Politics. We are very excited to have Chief Justice Nuss with us this year and look forward to a great turnout.”
The celebration culminates with the traditional birthday cake-cutting ceremony at 11 a.m., which involves the honor guard presenting the cake to invited guests. The honor of getting the first slice goes to the oldest Marine present at the ceremony, with the youngest Marine taking the second piece. In the past, Marines as old as 104 have been honored with the first slice of cake.
The event is free and open to the public.