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Front & Center News from Fork Union Military Academy – March 4, 2022

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Stories in this issue:

  • Fork Union Signs Articulations Agreement with The Citadel
  • Have You Ordered Your Skirmisher?
  • The Rifle Team Defeated Lumen Christi Archangels Thursday
  • This Week's College Acceptances
  • Phonathon Surpasses Goal
  • Parent & Alumni Notes
  • Fork Union Mourns the Loss of Bill Miller
  • Upcoming Admissions Events
  • Do you want to be a part of our Cadet Corps?

Fork Union Signs Articulations Agreement with the Citadel

Fork Union Military Academy continues to strengthen the futures of its cadets by creating articulation agreements with colleges and universities around the nation. This past Tuesday, the Academy added to that list when Colonel David Coggins signed an agreement with The Citadel. Coggins invited Commandant of Cadets Colonel Thomas Gordon to campus this past Tuesday to sign on the dotted line.

The articulation agreement states that any Fork Union cadet, who meets The Citadel’s undergraduate admission requirements, will be guaranteed admission.

“Establishing these articulation agreements strengthens the Academy’s continued foundation as a college-preparatory school,” said Director of College Placement and Academic Services Kelsey Hill. “These articulation agreements allow us to strengthen and forge relationships with prestigious universities. In addition, provides our cadets with reputable college-bound opportunities.”

Following the signatures, Colonel Gordon also spoke to the Corps of Cadets during a special Chapel presentation on the admission process at The Citadel.

Cadets in the Scale Modelers’ Club attended the Old Dominion Open model contest and swap meet on Saturday, February 26th, at the Richmond International Speedway.

The Rifle Team Defeated Lumen Christi Archangels Thursday

This past Thursday, the Blue Devil Riflemen took on the Lumen Christi Archangels of Anchorage, Alaska in a virtual rifle match as part of the Orion New Shooters League program. The Blue Devils won the match, scoring 818.9 points against the Archangels' 725.8. With the win over Lumen Christi, Fork Union has improved its record to 3-3 as the Blue Devils go on Spring Break. The squad was led by the top scorer, Tzu-Heng Hung of Taiwan, along with IIsaac Gilman, Ethan Schroyer, Niv Patel, Christopher Acosta-Serrano, and Ethan Stroh.

Most of this year’s team are first-time shooters with limited familiarity with competitive shooting. A few have never held an air rifle before. Despite starting the rifle season late this year, the FUMA Riflemen have learned the basic rifle marksmanship skills that are making them more competitive with each passing week. Several of the team members participate in other sports including baseball, judo, and lacrosse. The head coaches of these teams have been very supportive of the Rifle Team and allow their team members to compete with the team during tournaments.

Have You Ordered Your Skirmisher?

Don't forget to reserve your copy of the school's yearbook, The Skirmisher, from Jostens for this year! Go to jostens.com/2022yearbook or click the button below. Don't delay, do it today.

Did Phonathon Reach the Goal?

When our cadets started making their calls last Thursday for the final night of our Phonathon this year, they were just eight thousand dollars short of their goal.

Did they reach the goal?

Not only did the team reach the goal of $125,000, they crushed the numbers and raised a total of $157,733! What an accomplishment!

Our cadets may have finished up placing their phone calls last week, but our team in the Advancement Department is still adding up all the gifts and pledges that have been pouring in from the phones and our online giving form.

Even though our cadets are back on CQ (their mandatory study period) instead of calling on the phones in the evening, it is not too late for you to make a gift to the Phonathon. Our online Phonathon giving form will remain operating for the next couple of weeks and you can make your gift there at https://www.forkunion.com/phonathon or by clicking the button below.

This Week's College Acceptances

Our cadets in the Class of 2022 continue to stack up college acceptance letters!

Our goal each year is that 100% of our seniors gain college acceptance, and the Class of 2022 had already achieved that goal as of December 13th. This amazing accomplishment is a credit to the hard work done by our seniors and the excellent support given to each one of them by our College Placement and Academic Services team under the leadership of the department's Director, Kelsey Hill, and the Assistant Director, Dr. James Benson.

Congratulations to our seniors in the Class of 2022, and a big thank you to the members of our Department of College Placement and Academic Services!

Parent & Alumni Notes

Save the Date: Alumni Weekend

Alumni Weekend is coming! Now is the time to block off your calendar for April 29-May 1, and to make your hotel reservations.Click the button below to learn more about the hotels that have blocks of rooms for Alumni Weekend.

Have You Submitted Your Reenrollment Documents Yet?

We have already received completed reenrollment paperwork from almost half (49%) of our current cadets who are eligible to return for the 2022-2023 school year. May 31st is the deadline to submit your reenrollment contract and pay your registration fee for the next school year. If you have any questions please email our admissions team at admissions@fuma.org.

Campus Going Cashless for Cadets After Spring Break

When cadets return from Spring Break later this spring, they will want to have a debit card of some kind on hand if they wish to purchase snacks at the Social Center or make any other similar purchases on campus.

The campus is going cashless after spring break.

Cadets may still have cash as needed for travel home or for use on off-campus trips, but all facilities on campus will only accept credit or debit cards for purchases, and will not accept cash.

There are vendors and banks that specialize in providing debit cards for kids and teenagers that permit parents to manage and monitor all spending activity. Many of our families already use cards such as those offered by Greenlight. You can learn more about Greenlight cards at https://greenlight.com/, although Fork Union Military Academy has no relationship with Greenlight or any other such vendor and we simply offer this website as an information resource.

The Annual Military Ball is Set for April 2, 2022

The Quadrille Club invites all ninth-grade through postgraduate cadets to the 2022 "A Night Around the World" Military Ball on Saturday, April 2.

Tickets are $40 per couple. Please see Mr. York to sign up. Invitations will be emailed once payment has been made.

Fork Union mourns the loss of FUMA legend William "Bill" Miller

Miller, a 1952 alumnus, worked at the Academy for over 30 years

Fork Union Military Academy and the Fork Union community is sad to announce the passing of FUMA legend William "Bill" Miller on Thursday, February 24, 2022. Bill, a 1952 alumnus, was born on February 27, 1934, the youngest child and only boy of the late Burton Kindt and Frieda Koch Miller of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, who predeceased him. He was also preceded in death by brothers-in-law Charles "Pinky" Tertusek, Vincent J. McAndrew, Jack A. Campbell, and Leonard J. Mark; sister-in-law Rose Marie Mark Campbell; nephews James V. McAndrew, Robert B. McAndrew, Charles A. Tertusek; and granddaughter Kathryn Towler Shuman.

As a college freshman on December 26, 1953, Bill married his high school sweetheart Geraldine “Jell” Mark, and the couple lived in Charlottesville, Virginia until his graduation from the University of Virginia in 1958. Following graduation, Bill and Jell moved to Fork Union, Virginia, where he taught Algebra I and 2, and became the head postgraduate basketball coach at Fork Union Military Academy. He led the postgraduate program for 13 years and then served as the Assistant Athletic Director, a position he held until his retirement in 1997.

At Fork Union, Bill and Jell not only created a loving family, but were instrumental in creating a tight-knit community of colleagues and families that added fulfillment to their lives. Bill recruited and mentored countless Fork Union cadets in athletics and academics, many of them from his beloved Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania. Bill took his role as a mentor, coach, and teacher to Fork Union cadets and members of the Fork Union community as a privilege.

Bill was an excellent athlete. He graduated from Bethlehem High School, currently known as Liberty High School, in 1952, having lettered in basketball, baseball, soccer and football. As a high school senior, he was named to the First Team All-East Pennsylvania League Team, won the Bethlehem Boy’s Club Athlete of the Year award, and was named to the United Press and the Associated Press First Team All-State Pennsylvania Basketball Teams. He also recorded a perfect game while on the diamond as a left-handed pitcher in baseball.

Following graduation, Bill accepted a basketball scholarship to Villanova University. Unhappy there, he left Philadelphia in November of 1952 before his freshman basketball season began, and through a Bethlehem High School friend, he landed at Fork Union Military Academy – sight unseen – in time to play on the postgraduate team. At FUMA, he made the First Team All-Military Virginia team and head coach Bus Male recruited and signed him to play basketball at the University of Virginia. At UVa, Bill was a three-year starter at point guard, playing as a sophomore with famed Buzzy Wilkinson. As a pass-first point guard, Bill, along with scorer Buzzy, made a great combination, and they became lifelong friends. Bill ended his Cavalier career with scoring 949 points in 70 games over three seasons, was the team captain his senior year, and earned Second Team All-ACC Tournament Team honors in 1956 and 1957. He was credited with the first triple-double in ACC history on Feb 1, 1955, scoring 11 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and dishing out 10 assists, in a 98-91 loss to No. 6-ranked NC State. Bill also lettered in baseball for two years and soccer for one year at UVa.

Bill was inducted in the Lehigh Valley Basketball Hall of Fame in 1979, the Liberty High School Sports Hall of Fame in 1999 and the Fork Union Military Academy Sports Hall of Fame in 2000.

Bill and Jell were married for 66 years until her passing in 2020. He is survived by his four children, daughter Patricia (John) Shuman of Fork Union, VA; daughter Kathleen (Jeffrey) Warn of Virginia Beach, VA; son William, Jr. “Billy” (Chimee) Miller of Arlington, VA; and son, Michael (Michelle) Miller of Washington, DC. He is also survived by nine grandchildren who loved their “Dee Dee” so very much: Elizabeth, Ryan (Meredith), Kelly (Reginald), Mark, Alex, Kaitlin, Anu, Zoe, and Riley. Three great-grandchildren, Clark, Keizer and Mikya, also survive him, as well as his sisters Betty McAndrew and Grace Tertusek of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and their children.

The family would like to acknowledge and thank Dr. and Mrs. Randall Bashore for their exceptional care and friendship throughout the years, along with wonderful caregivers Angela Miller, Jasmyne Johnston, Bianca Dudley, Carolyn Woodson, Megan Miller, Wendy Woodward, Bonnie Nicholson, Natarisha Ware, and Jackie Finchem, all of whom treated him with love and kindness. The family also wishes to acknowledge the staffs at Morningside of Charlottesville and Martha Jefferson House.

A Celebration of Life will be held Saturday, March 12, 2022, at 1:00 PM at the Wicker Chapel of Fork Union Military Academy, followed by a reception in the Thomas Gymnasium on Fork Union Military Academy’s campus: 4744 James Madison HWY, Fork Union, VA 23055. Donations in Bill’s name may be made to Fork Union Military Academy’s Athletic Department: ATTN AD Club, 4744 James Madison HWY, Fork Union, VA 23055.

To learn more about Miller, read the article below from the Daily Progress.

The Daily Progress: Bill Miller left indelible mark on basketball in Central Virginia

Upcoming Admissions Events

The best way to learn about Fork Union Military Academy is to schedule an appointment with our Admissions Office and come for a family visit and receive your own individual tour of the campus.

We also schedule a number of Admissions Fairs in various cities and regions throughout the year. The available spaces at our upcoming admissions events have been filling up quickly with our Fairfax, VA admissions events for February and March already being "sold out."

Saturday, April 9—Admissions Fair in Fairfax, VA

  • Meet with our admissions staff at an Admissions Fair on Saturday, February 19th, from 9 AM to 1 PM at the Fairfax Marriott at Fair Oaks.

Do you want to be a part of our Cadet Corps?

Are you a young man in the 7th to 12th grade? Do you want to be a man known for integrity, respect for yourself and others, faith, character, and discipline?

We encourage you to fill out an application for enrollment and join our cadets here at Fork Union Military Academy.

Created By
Kelly Barnette
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Photos by: Kristin Firewicz, Dan Thompson, Kate Goad, David Wallace