'Last Corps Trip' Author's Ring Added To Association Exhibits

"The Last Corps Trip" etched on a wall at the Bonfire Memorial. The full text of the poem can be found at AggieNetwork.com/muster/song_tlct.aspx.
 

By Holly Rine '16

“It was judgement day in Aggieland,
and tenseness filled the air.” 

Those two short lines are the opening of a poem with immeasurable significance to the Aggie Network. It would be challenging to find an Aggie who hasn’t at least heard a mention of The Last Corps Trip, a poem written by Philo H. “Buddy” DuVal, Jr. ’51.

Written as a response to a professor’s less-than-favorable opinions of cadets missing class because of a Corps trip, the poem has over time become an iconic part of the Aggie anthology. (Read DuVal's recollections of writing this famous poem.) Recited annually at Aggie Muster, yell practice, and the Bonfire Remembrance Ceremony, DuVal’s poem has touched the lives of many Aggies.

It has been etched into hearts just as it has been etched into stone.

“Boys, let’s play the Spirit,
For the last time in Aggieland.”

Buddy DuVal, a true Aggie through and through, passed away in February. He had always hoped his Aggie Ring would make its way home to Aggieland upon his passing, and that golden piece of DuVal’s Aggie Spirit did come home to Aggieland on the morning of March 13 when his widow, Evelyn DuVal, donated his Aggie Ring to The Association of Former Students as a lasting tribute to his memory and his contributions to the Aggie family. 

“I promised him I’d bring this Ring to A&M,” Evelyn DuVal said. 

Evelyn DuVal (left) presents the Aggie Ring of her late husband, Buddy DuVal '51, to Katherine Scarmardo '09, Aggie Ring Program senior associate. Photo by Holly Rine '16.

She was also grateful for the opportunity to visit campus one more time. “All of this is closure for me as a widow of a wonderful man,” she said. “I enjoyed being his wife for 11 years.” (Read Buddy DuVal's full obituary.)

Members of her family accompanied her on the trip to Aggieland. A prospective-student tour of campus for her grandson ended at the Clayton W. Williams, Jr. Alumni Center, and the family got the chance to interact with the exhibits on the Neely Mezzanine and see where Buddy’s Ring would be displayed among other A&M artifacts and Aggie Rings. 

Association Vice President Kathryn Greenwade '88 guides Evelyn DuVal and family members through the Legacy Exhibit on the Neely Mezzanine at the Williams Alumni Center. Photo by Holly Rine '16.

It was a joyful yet emotional day for her as the family recalled DuVal’s love for his alma mater. Kathryn Greenwade ’88, vice president of human resources and communications for The Association, joined the group and spoke a bit on the significance of The Last Corps Trip surrounding the Bonfire collapse in 1999 and the annual Bonfire Remembrance Ceremony. 

Hearing how the poem brought healing to the hurting student body helped in Evelyn’s own healing over the loss of her husband. “Part of the memories that I will have are all the former students that called or wrote cards expressing what this poem has meant to them,” she said. “And to know that it was a meaningful way for the Bonfire survivors, for the whole Aggie family, to be able to have closure after a tragedy like this had happened to their beloved student body, it was a time that needed something to express their hurt and feeling and …” she trailed off, at a loss for words. 

“And also hope,” Greenwade offered. 

“Yes, hope,” Evelyn agreed.

Greenwade said Buddy DuVal gave the Aggie Network an incredible gift when he penned The Last Corps Trip: "His words resonate with Aggies and have provided inspiration, solace and comfort through the years. We are honored to preserve and protect his Ring in the Clayton W. Williams, Jr. Alumni Center. We look forward to having it displayed, along with his poem, so that future generations of Aggies can learn more about Buddy and his love for Texas A&M.” 

Evelyn DuVal said her husband loved his years at Texas A&M, and she was pleased to fulfill her promise to him to bring the Ring back to Aggieland. “This gives me something to remember what a wonderful university this is,” she said, adding that she hopes her grandson will one day also be an Aggie.

Photo by Holly Rine '16

DuVal’s Ring will be added to the Polly Wiseman Franklin '86 Ring Collection, which is housed in the Aggie Ring Office. As improvements are made to the exhibits on the Neely Mezzanine as part of the Lead By Example initiative, DuVal’s Ring will be added permanently to the Legacy Exhibit.

“It’s just another Corps Trip boys,
We’ll march in behind the band.”