Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 17, 1993 TAG: 9310170070
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: E-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ROBERT FREIS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Rick Wilson, Virginia Tech's 1993 Homecoming King, lacks an escort to the school's Navy and Marine Corps Ball on Nov. 6.
Between school work and homecoming campaigning, he's not had a chance to invite anyone.
So here are the particulars: Wilson, a senior biochemistry major, is 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighs 165 pounds. A corps company officer with the student rank of major, he plans to be a naval aviator.
Plus, he looks downright spiffy in a dress-white uniform.
Wilson also wore a bashful grin and carried a rose as he took a victory promenade around Lane Stadium Saturday with Homecoming Queen Jenny Fisher on his arm.
He was crowned Homecoming King at halftime of the Hokies' 55-7 pasting of Temple after having been elected by Tech students earlier in the week.
Wilson becomes the fifth such king and a true symbol of gender equity.
"He's a fine representative," said Judi Lynch, Tech's homecoming court adviser.
Tech, by electing homecoming kings, isn't trying to strike a blow for men's rights, she said. The idea is merely to get more campus groups and more students involved in homecoming.
In Wilson's case, organizational savvy and a high-toned campaign message carried Wilson to victory over six other candidates.
His candidacy was endorsed and supported by two prominent campus groups, the Corps of Cadets and the Black Organization Council.
Candidates have a $100 limit on spending and two weeks to campaign. Unlike most politicians, they're forbidden to say anything negative about the opposition.
"It's taken very seriously," Lynch said.
Wilson said he was tapped to run by fellow members of the corps. "They said they needed somebody who was well-rounded, cordial and an all-around nice guy. They asked me if I would do it. I said, `Sure.' "
He's already a success story in his own family. Wilson was born in Ethiopia and moved to the United States at age 3. He grew up in Rochester, N.Y.
After joining the Navy out of high school and serving for 18 months, Wilson was awarded an ROTC scholarship and enrolled at Tech four years ago as a member of the corps.
Wilson said he's the first member of his family to attend high school and will be the first college graduate next year.
Wilson's heritage heightens his sensitivity to current events involving the U.S. military in Somalia and elsewhere around the world.
America's humanitarian motives in Somalia are laudable, but the United Nations needs to take a greater share of the mission's responsibility, he said.
If the United States intervenes in other global trouble spots, its military goal should be clearly defined, he said. "We need to go in, do what we have to do, and leave."
On the subject of women in the military, Wilson said he'd have no problem serving with properly qualified and trained female soldiers in combat.
Concerning women students at VMI, Wilson said other options should be attempted before the school's long-standing all-male tradition is broken.
Philosophy aside, this officer and gentleman said he would've been happy just to have a date for Saturday night's homecoming dance.
by CNB