NAYONIKAA SINGHAAL
PHOTOGRAPHER
JAMIE DIEDRICH
STAFF WRITER
11/25/2024
This month, the flagpole that is located in front of the Hood Building and next to the Reid-Knox Administration Building was removed. In its place, wood pallets were put down and then a week later the area was covered by a tent. This left many on campus curious as there wasn’t any circulation about the purpose of this removal.
“It’s interesting and I’m curious to find out why they removed the flagpole. I don’t know why they started this project in winter, that wouldn’t have been my call. It gives an interesting perspective to how Alma college is spending their funding. I’ve never had strong opinions on the flagpole, what really stands out is the placement of this project during winter,” said Anaya Prabhuram, (‘27).
However, Timothy Pinnow, Senior Vice President for Strategic Initiatives/Chief Operating Officer at Alma College, had the answer: it was removed to make way for a new memorial which will be placed next to the flagpole. The flag will be returned once the monument is finished.
The materials for the monument, which were initially in the (old) library for years before being stored in the new library, are now being reinstalled into the Chapel lawn. Existing materials are being refreshed and placed in this new setting, with the plaque reading, ‘A gift to Alma College by his family and many friends, 1983’.
“Firstly, there’s a new flagpole going in. There is a solo eagle out there, it’s called the victory eagle. That eagle was created to commemorate the work of a gentleman at the college who, I believe it was dedicated in the maybe the eighties or seventies, had been a faculty member, and then he was a long-time employee in the finance office” said Pinnow.
“That gentleman that it commemorates, his son is a board member here. He wanted to see the eagle that [commemorated] his dad’s work back out and displayed, so he donated some money for that process,” said Pinnow.
“So that’s what brought all this about. He donated money specifically to have that eagle displayed again, and then also have the landscaping around it done,” said Pinnow. The area will also be lit up at night, to full highlight the memorial in all of its glory.
Pinnow noted that all of the money being used comes from that donation, it isn’t being pulled from anywhere else. It was all done in a singular donation, so there aren’t any plans for further renovation around the area. He noted that the only thing left in the plan is the addition of the new flag itself.
The memorial is dedicated to Stephen Meyer, Jr. Marshall M. Fredericks made the sculpture. Meyer was a former Professor of Business Administration at Alma College from 1952-1958.
He also served as chairman of the department, business manager, controller and Vice President of finance.
On the plaque that coincides with the eagle, the biblical verse Isiah 40:31 is inscribed. It reads “But they that wait upon the lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings as eagles; They shall run, and not be weary; They shall walk and not faint.”
The Alma College campus is filled with memorials and plaques like this one. For example, there are several other statues in front of Admissions facing W. Superior St. and many plaques in front of trees on the grounds that were dedicated to individuals touched by the collegeIt is things like this that reveal the rich connection Alma College has with its staff, faculty and students and the mark it leaves on those with the opportunity to experience all it has to offer.
The Almanian: News 
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