The Greenbrier Valley Community Foundation (GVCF) will host a program on Aug. 23 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Greenbrier Military School Museum to introduce people to the museum and highlight the contributions to our community made by Edward “Eddie” Yarid, GMS class of 1941 and 1943. The program will allow participants to view the museum collection and enjoy a PowerPoint presentation about Yarid’s life in Lewisburg, his years at GMS, and his service in World War II. Light food and beverages will be served.
Greenbrier Military School (GMS) was a private boys’ military boarding school in operation in Lewisburg from 1910 until 1972. It educated around 350 boys a year from the 7th grade through a post-graduate year after high school and, for a time, through two years of junior college. Local boys like Eddie Yarid attended as day students. Boarding cadets came from West Virginia and neighboring states. Some years even saw many boys from Latin America and Cuba.
The Greenbrier Military School Museum was built by the Greenbrier Military School Alumni Association in 2006 and is located in the Roland P. Sharp Alumni Center at the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine. The museum contains an excellent collection of photographs and memorabilia from the school’s history. Visitors can learn what daily life was like for a cadet including haircuts, meals, room inspections, laundry, classes, study halls, drills, sports, dances, demerits and “walking the beat.”
The Greenbrier Valley Community Foundation administers six funds to help perpetuate the memory of GMS and its ideals of truth, duty, and honor. One fund specifically maintains the museum and will assist with its continuation under the management of the Greenbrier Historical Society when the Greenbrier Military School Alumni Association is no longer able to exist. Another fund, the Moore Family Philanthropic Scholarship Honoring Greenbrier Military School, requires applicants to visit the museum and compare their high school experiences with those of the cadets at GMS.
The Greenbrier Valley Community Foundation was created in 1999 to help the region remain an enriching community, where individuals and organizations will always have the resources needed to continue their vital work. It has distributed over $3.2 million to the community through the funds that it administers. To RSVP or for more information contact Courtney Smith, executive director, at 304-645-5620 or info@gvfoundation.org.
