Contact: Peter Burgo, 719-265-2006, burgop@cmalliance.org

NYACK, New York, October 6 /Christian Newswire/ -- On October 10, 2008, Nyack College will commemorate the 40th anniversary of Nyack alumni who were martyred during the Vietnam War. The event will take place during the college's annual Homecoming weekend.

The alumni who lost their lives in 1968 while serving as missionaries with The Christian and Missionary Alliance were Leon Griswold ('19), Nathan Robert Ziemer ('41), Carl Edward Thompson ('45) and Ruth Stebbins Thompson ('46), Ruth Wilting ('48), Carolyn Griswold ('49), and Betty Ann Olsen ('62). Two other alumni, Dr. Ardel Vietti ('48) and Archie Mitchell ('44), who were lost in 1962, will be honored as well. Relatives of the fallen men and women will attend the tribute.

The keynote speaker for the Founder's Day Chapel, Friday, October 10 at 10 a.m. in Pardington Hall on the Rockland campus, will be U.S. Navy Rear Admiral R. Timothy Ziemer ('65), the U.S. malaria coordinator appointed by President George W. Bush. In addition, Dr. Tom Stebbins, global ambassador for Evangelism Explosion, will speak at the Alumni Homecoming banquet at 6:30 p.m. in Boon Campus Center. Admiral Ziemer's father and Dr. Stebbins' sister, Ruth Stebbins Thompson, were killed during the Tet Offensive, a countrywide North Vietnamese military campaign designed to topple the South Vietnamese government in a single blow.

These courageous disciples fully embraced the words of Christ in Matthew 16:24: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me."

To view the biographies of the Vietnam martyrs, visit archives.cmalliance.org

The Alliance is a fellowship of Christ followers joined together in local churches, dedicated to fulfilling Christ's command to make disciples of all nations. The Alliance has a thoroughly evangelical doctrinal statement and encourages believers from diverse backgrounds and theological traditions to unite to complete Christ's Great Commission.

CONTACT:

Nyack College Alumni Office

One South Blvd, Nyack, NY 10960-3698

Phone: 845-675-4589

Peter Burgo

The Christian and Missionary Alliance

Phone: 719-265-2007

E-mail: burgop@cmalliance.org