MTSU Daniels Center’s service to veterans earns ‘Opry Salutes the Troops’ spotlight

From left, retired Lt. Gen. Keith Huber, senior adviser for veterans and leadership initiatives at Middle Tennessee State University, graduate student Maranda Vecchio, a graduate student in the university’s physician assistant program, and WKRN Local on 2 hosts Larissa Wohl and Laura Schweizer discusses the university’s support for student-veterans during WKRN’s Local on 2 telecast on Monday, May 22, from the station’s studio in Nashville, Tenn. (MTSU photo by James Cessna)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee State University’s Charlie and Hazel Daniels Military and Family Center is teaming up with the Grand Ole Opry on Tuesday, May 23, to pay tribute to the service by active duty military and veterans during the annual Opry Salutes the Troops event.

Retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Huber, MTSU’s senior adviser for veterans and leadership initiatives, and Air Force veteran Maranda Vecchio, a graduate student in the university’s physician assistant program, appeared on WKRN’s Local on 2 on Monday, May 22, to discuss the Daniels Center’s service to veterans and preview the Opry’s military tribute.

Retired Lt. Gen. Keith Huber, left, senior adviser for veterans and leadership initiatives at Middle Tennessee State University, discusses the university’s support for student-veterans and military-connected students like Maranda Vecchio, right, a graduate student in the university’s physician assistant program, during their appearance on WKRN’s Local on 2 on Monday, May 22, from the station’s studio in Nashville, Tenn. (MTSU photo by James Cessna)

Huber, whose 38 years of service in the Army included numerous combat and overseas tours, created the Daniels Center at MTSU. Named for the late country music icon and patron Charlie Daniels and his wife, Hazel, the center is the largest and most comprehensive facility of its kind on an academic campus in the nation.

The Daniels Center enables the over 1,200 military-connected student population at MTSU to have a one-stop shop to meet a variety of academic needs. It allows military-connected students to study, gather and get help from fellow veterans, who will serve as peer advisors and sponsors. It is also a resource for veterans and their families without the restriction or requirement to be students, faculty or staff at MTSU.

Huber shared on Local at 2 that Tuesday’s Opry event will feature a 5:30 p.m. Central Red Carpet Parade, where service members and veterans attending the show, as well as their spouses, children and parents accompanying them, will be honored as they enter the Opry House. The 7 p.m. Opry show will feature John Conlee, The Oak Ridge Boys, Jason Crabb, LOCASH and The War and Treaty.

From left, WKRN Local on 2 host Larissa Wohl; retired Lt. Gen. Keith Huber, senior adviser for veterans and leadership initiatives at Middle Tennessee State University; MTSU graduate student Maranda Vecchio, a graduate student in the university’s physician assistant program; and Local on 2 co-host Laura Schweizer pose for a photo Monday, May 22, from the station’s studio in Nashville, Tenn. Huber and Vecchio appeared on the program to discuss the university’s support for student-veterans through the Charlie and Hazel Daniels Veterans and Military Family Center. (MTSU photo by James Cessna)

Huber will also appear on the Opry stage to introduce Vecchio, who entered the first class of MTSU’s Physician Assistant Program in May 2022. A native of Woodbury, Tennessee, she started at MTSU in 2006, then left to serve in the Air Force as a dental assistant for five years. She returned to Tennessee, finished her undergraduate degree and later sought to rejoin MTSU as a graduate student.

Dr. Hilary Miller, director, Charlie and Hazel Daniels Veterans and Military Family Center — Dr. Hilary Miller

However, Vecchio said she hit several bureaucratic roadblocks that prevented her from accessing her veteran educational benefits for four years before learning about the Daniels Center. Huber, along with the center’s director, Hilary Miller, resolved her issues in two weeks.

“Let me just say, they have moved mountains,” Vecchio said. “Transitioning out of the military is rough. Having the Daniels Center is such a blessing… It is so special, as a veteran, to be able to walk into an office to approach someone with your issue, some trouble you may be having, or just for some advice. I really believe that the whole staff cares about our vets. I don’t believe they are just advocates; they want to see us succeed — and we know that.”

In addition to working with the Opry, the country music’s iconic stage and longest-running radio broadcast in U.S. history, the Daniels Center has taken part in military recognition efforts by other Nashville brands, including the Nashville Predators, the Nashville Sounds, the Nashville Superspeedway and the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix.

To find out more about the Daniels Center, go to https://mtsu.edu/military.

— Andrew Oppmann (Andrew.Oppmann@mtsu.edu)