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Overflow Crowd Hears Heroic Tales Of Tuskegee Airmen At Dowling College
Dowling College Provost Dr. Richard Resch presents Tuskegee Airmen a $1,000 and a plaque that will be hung at Dowling's Brookhaven Center.
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More than 200 people attended a presentation by two members of the renowned Tuskegee Airmen and their special guests at Dowling College's Brookhaven Campus in Shirley on March 10. Dowling College honored the ongoing education and community efforts of the Airmen with a $1,000 donation to The Tuskegee Airmen Educational Scholarship Fund. The event was part of Dowling's yearlong celebration of African-American culture.
Tuskegee Airmen and WWII combat fighter pilots Bill Wheeler and Victor Terrelonge described their training, combat missions and the racism they encountered prior to, during, and after their WWII service. Special guest Gottfried Dulias, a WWII Luftwaffe combat fighter pilot, read from his upcoming book, which describes his three years as a prisoner of war in a Russian Gulag. Record-setting African-American female pilot Ruby Bostic also provided stories of inspiration.
Attendees stayed for more than an hour following the presentation to talk to the aviators, take photos with them, and receive their autographs.
The Tuskegee Airmen were instrumental in the Allied victory in World War II. Their outstanding record of accomplishment were important factors in desegregation of the U.S. military and efforts to achieve racial equality throughout America.
About Dowling College
Dowling College is an independent, coeducational college that serves more than 6,500 students at
its historic Rudolph Campus on the banks of the Connetquot River in Oakdale, NY, and the 105-acre
Brookhaven Campus in eastern Long Island and a business center located near the Nassau-Suffolk
border in Melville. Dowling offers Bachelor′s, Master′s, and Doctoral degrees in several
disciplines through its four schools: Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business, and Education.
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