First Collegiate Rolling Thunder POW/MIA Chair Dedicated at University of Toledo

On Saturday, October 19, 2013  a single unoccupied chair, donated by Hussey Seating Company, was dedicated in honor of military service personnel who are, or were, prisoners of war (POW) or have been declared missing in action (MIA). This chair will sit permanently unoccupied in Section I of the University of Toledo’s Glass Bowl Stadium in remembrance of over 92,000 POW/MIA, making it the first collegiate dedication in the country. The ceremony took place during University of Toledo Vs. Navy pre-game and was aired on ESPN. Farnham Equipment Company’s David Fahrenholz was honored to represent Hussey Seating Company at this memorable event.

While the Rolling Thunder POW/MIA chair is new to the collegiate venue, many have been dedicated in New England in Gillette Stadium home of the New England Patriots, TD Garden home of the Boston Celtics and Boston Bruins, Lowell Spinners Ballpark, and Boston’s Fenway Park.  Joseph D’Entremont, president of Rolling Thunder Massachusetts Chapter 1, first saw an empty seat dedicated in Bristol, Tennessee and had a vision to make it happen across the country.

LT Haraz N. Ghanbari of the University of Toledo shared with us:

Last November, I learned that the New England Patriots NFL team held the first such dedication for a professional sports team. The University of Toledo has been named a military friendly school for four consecutive years by G.I. Jobs, and as the university’s Military Liaison, I thought having a POW/MIA dedication at our Glass Bowl football stadium, and another scheduled for later this year at Savage Arena, was a natural extension of our support for our nation’s service members and veterans – specifically those Prisoners of War or Missing in Action. Our Military Service Center and our Athletics Department partnered for the seat dedication at the Glass Bowl.

Everyday there are thousands of men and women who are on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to protect our freedoms and our way of life. Since World War II alone, more than 83,000 of those men and women never returned home to their loved ones. Our nation has a collective commitment to never forget the sacrifices of these brave men and women, and to never abandon our responsibility to do everything in our power to bring them home or provide a full accounting to their families.

The concept for a permanently unoccupied POW/MIA seat in sports stadiums originated with Joe D’Entremont and Rolling Thunder Massachusetts Chapter 1. I contacted The New England Patriots and they put me in touch with Joe. Joe’s vision is for stadiums, arenas and public places across America to display an empty seat in honor or our nation’s POW/MIA. I join Joe in his vision, and as a veteran and military officer, I am humbled and grateful that The University of Toledo was the first college in America to have such a dedication. I certainly hope that other colleges follow suit.

A big thanks goes to Joe D’Entremont, Rolling Thunder Massachusetts Chapter 1 and Hussey Seating of Maine for their support. May we never forget those who answered this nation’s call to service, but never came home.   

With Rolling Thunder, Hussey Seating Company and people like LT Haraz N. Ghanbari, the Rolling Thunder POW/MIA dedicated chairs will a leave legacy across the country to ensure those who fought for our country are never to be forgotten.