Veterans tell their stories, experiences as part of Birke Fine Arts Symposium

War veterans are giving people something to think about this week, with some learning how to effectively write about their experiences while those already published speak out as part of the Birke Fine Arts Symposium.

"The Birke Fine Arts Symposium happens every four years, and each time it has a different theme. It involves events that are sponsored by the art, theater, music and English Departments," said John Van Kirk, professor and English chairman of the Symposium Committee. "So this year, the theme is ‘Giving Voice: Social Justice and The Arts,' and when I heard that theme I started to think about what might we do as people from the English Department and what is it we have to offer."

The event will begin Friday and last through Saturday, with registration and a book-fair to kick off at 3 p.m.

"I started thinking about some of the people I've seen in my classes who have been recently back from the war in Afghanistan and Iraq," Van Kirk said. "Some of them are struggling and some of them are having a fine time in college and I thought what could we do for these people and how do these people fit into this idea. Then I thought about Veterans who tell their stories and I thought maybe we could get a couple of writers who have that experience."

Anyone interested in writing about wars or about a veteran is allowed to register for the workshops, which will take place Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. in Smith Hall.

"I thought maybe we could offer workshops that would allow young or old women and men who have served in some capacity or another, to give them some tools to talk about or write about their experiences," Van Kirk said.  "Which, for one thing, can let the rest of us know what they are going through and for another thing just the writing itself can be therapeutic and helpful for them."

The speakers, James Mathews and Richard Currey, are veterans of different wars and from different branches of the government.

Richard Currey's biography on his Web site said, "My grandfather finished the eighth grade in a one-room school in the rural mountains, but he was a lifelong reader, an admirer of books and by extension, the people who made them. He pushed me to read, and introduced me to books that a boy in the 1950s generally wasn't exposed to ­– ‘Wise Blood,' ‘The Sound and the Fury' and ‘A Farewell to Arms.'"

Currey was born in Parkersburg, W. Va. and enlisted in the Navy. He served as a medical doctor in the Marine Corps and did duty during Vietnam War.

James Mathews' biography on his Web site said he is a member of the D.C. Air National Guard and since 9/11, has been active and deployed overseas numerous times, including tours in the Middle East and Iraq in 2003 and 2006.

 Mathews was raised in El Paso, Texas., and has lived on different Army bases throughout the country.

"During the workshop the writers will talk about their own experiences and probably offer exercises on how to deal with the memory or deal with settings," Van Kirk said. "These will be hands-on writing workshops that get down to the nitty-gritty of actually writing down the story."

All events are free to the public and will be located in Smith Hall, except for the reception on Friday evening at 9 p.m., which will be downtown at 940 4th Ave. at the Frederick Hotel lobby.

    Kasha Shull can be contacted at shull11@marshall.edu.