Wreath-Laying Ceremony
11:00 a.m. on Friday, November 10, 2023
Henry Solomon Lehr statue, near Main St. on the ONU campus
(If there is inclement weather, the ceremony will be held in the Snyder Recital Hall located in Presser Building.)
2023 Veterans Day ceremonies at Ohio Northern University will include a program with veteran James Lee, Petty Officer 3rd class. Lee served in the U.S. Navy from June 2006 to November 2011.
Lee began his military career at boot camp in Chicago Illinois at Recruit Training Command Great Lakes. During his time of service, he had two primary positions, a Bos'n Mate and an Aviation Ordnanceman. While he was stationed in Guam on the USS Frank Cable AS40 he did multiple small deployments in the Pacific in support of submarine operations for 3 years.
PO3 Lee then trained in Pensacola Florida for a few months before going to Virginia Beach for his last year and a half where he was stationed at Naval Air Station Oceana with Strike Fighter Squadron VFW 103 Jolly Rogers. While with the air squadron, he did a six-month deployment in the Persian Gulf supporting troops on the ground in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom.
Lee enrolled at Ohio Northern University in the fall of 2012 after having served in the Navy for five and a half years. He graduated from Northern in May of 2016 with a Bachelor of Arts degree with dual majors in Criminal Justice and Sociology. Although he was a bit older than his classmates, James was very involved in organizations on campus. In addition to being instrumental in Ohio Northern Veterans Organization for four years, he was involved in the ONU Lions Club and the Delta Sigma Phi fraternity. Being involved in Delta Sigma Phi led him to being part of the Interfraternity Council and the Greek honorary, Order of Omega. James also exceled in academics and was initiated in the honoraries Alpha Phi Sigma for Criminal Justice and Alpha Kappa Delta for Sociology.
Lee has been with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction for eight years; he is currently a Correctional Sergeant at the Allen Oakwood Correction Institution in Lima. James is married to Marissa Watson Lee and has a six-year-old son Rykin Watson-Lee, and they live in Lima.
