University Dedicates Bower Veterans Lounge and Center
The University of Lynchburg honored veterans and alumni on Veterans Day with a luncheon and a ribbon cutting for a new advocacy center.
Updated on Nov. 13, 2026 in Philanthropy
The University of Lynchburg dedicated the Dr. John D. Bower Veterans Lounge and Advocacy Center on Veterans Day, November 11. The center replaces a veterans lounge previously located in Drysdale Student Center.
Why it matters
The dedication gives veterans on campus a permanent, expanded space named for a donor who funded veterans programs at the university. It also recognizes local veterans and two alumni honored at the annual luncheon.
Dr. John D. Bower's 2010 gift of $250,000 established the Dr. John D. Bower Veterans Scholarship Fund, and his matching challenge for the veterans center added another $250,000 in pledged support. Harry L. Gray's December 2025 donation of $200,000 went to The Lynchburg Fund.
The players
University of Lynchburg
A private university in Lynchburg, Virginia, which dedicated the new veterans lounge and advocacy center.
Dr. John D. Bower
A physician who earned his bachelor's degree in two and a half years and later founded the John D. Bower School of Population Health at the University of Mississippi Medical Center; he died in 2023.
Aaron Martin
A retired first sergeant who served 22 years in the military and delivered the keynote address at the luncheon.
Harry L. Gray
A former regional director of the Virginia Department of Social Services who was honored with a plaque and donated $200,000 to The Lynchburg Fund.
The details
The dedication took place during a Veterans Day luncheon in Drysdale Student Center's West Room, with Aaron Martin, a retired first sergeant who served 22 years in the military, as keynote speaker. Attendees then walked to Hall Campus Center for a ribbon cutting, and Harry L. Gray was honored with a plaque displayed in the center.
Timeline
2010: Dr. John D. Bower donated $250,000 to establish a veterans scholarship fund.
2011: Bower Flag Bearers reached the fundraising goal for the veterans center.
December 2025: Harry L. Gray donated $200,000 to The Lynchburg Fund.
November 11, 2026: The Veterans Day luncheon and dedication of the Bower Veterans Lounge and Advocacy Center took place.
Legacy Gifts
The dedication follows Dr. John D. Bower's 2010 $250,000 gift to create the Dr. John D. Bower Veterans Scholarship Fund at Lynchburg College. The new center extends that early investment in veterans support into a dedicated campus space.
Veterans at the University of Lynchburg now have a dedicated lounge and advocacy center on campus. The space replaces the earlier lounge in Drysdale Student Center.
The takeaway
Named gifts and matching challenges can turn a single donor's early support into lasting campus infrastructure. The Bower center shows how a long-term commitment can take physical form years after the original gift.
Further reading
Explore more Lynchburg philanthropy coverage on donations and campus giving.
Source note: This article includes information reported by NewsAdvance.
