For immediate release:
March 10, 2005

United States Senator John W. Warner will speak to the graduating class of 2005 on Saturday, May 7 at 10:30 a.m. on the front lawn of Ferrum College.             Warner was first elected to the Senate in 1978, but his career in public service began long before then. He enlisted in the Navy at the age of 17 during World War II. It was not long after he completed his naval service that the nation was again at war, this time in Korea. Responding to the call, Warner served in Korea as an officer in the Marine Corps.

     From 1969 to 1974, Senator Warner served first as Undersecretary, then as Secretary of the Navy, leading the Navy and the Marine Corps through the second half of the Vietnam conflict. Following his work as Secretary of the Navy, Senator Warner was appointed by the President to represent the Executive Branch at events, both at home and abroad, honoring the Bicentennial of the founding of the United States of America.
 
      Now serving in his twenty-sixth year in the Senate, Warner chairs the influential Senate Armed Services Committee. In this capacity and throughout his career, he has shown unwavering support for the men and women of the armed forces. He has also been a champion of modernizing the structure and operations of the military to ensure its effectiveness in the 21st century.

      The Senator also serves on the Select Committee on Intelligence, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and the Environment and Public Works Committee.

A high-resolution photo of Senator Warner is available at: http://www.ferrum.edu/news/2005Spring/warner.jpg.

     Ferrum College is a four-year, private, co-educational, liberal arts college affiliated with the United Methodist Church. Ferrum offers a choice of nationally recognized bachelor’s degree programs at a cost well below the national average for private colleges. For more information on Ferrum, visit www.ferrum.edu.