Who was this guy, Lafayette? What was his background? What did he look like? What motivated him to come to America and get involved with our war with Britain? How did he come to be such a celebrity in America? Why was our College named after him? Come and find out!
Lafayette is known as the hero of two worlds for his roles in the American and French Revolutions. John Becica’s talk will consider how he affected the United States – his early life, his impact on the American Revolution, and his two return visits to America.
In 2002, Congress finally recognized Lafayette as an honorary US Citizen – only the 6th person to be so honored in our country’s history!
This lecture is being sponsored by the American Friends of Lafayette (AFL), the historic society honoring the Marquis, which was formed here during the College’s Centennial Celebration of the first classes in 1932, and by the Lafayette Alumni of the Lehigh Valley, the home chapter of the Alumni Association.
Our speaker is a Lafayette alum, a Life Member of the AFL, a member of the Sons of the American Revolution, and an Assistant Researcher and Treasurer for The Lafayette Trail, Inc. project.
John Becica graduated Lafayette in 1969. At his 30th reunion, he attended a lecture given by then College Archivist Diane Shaw. It was held outdoors on the patio of the “Chateau” on Paxinosa Ridge overlooking the campus. The topic was General Lafayette. Little had been said about the Marquis during John’s college years, and he was hooked. As a result of the lecture, he started reading about Lafayette, and he joined the American Friends of Lafayette. His recent experiences with the AFL group, have included traveling to greet the Hermione at its arrival at Yorktown in 2015, to tour Lafayette related sites in Boston in 2016, to Yorktown Victory Day in 2017, and to Annapolis in 2018. He is also active as an Assistant Researcher and Treasurer of The Lafayette Trail, Inc. a French-American effort to document, map, mark and promote Lafayette’s Triumphal Tour of America in 1824-1825 (The Farewell Tour which resulted in the naming of Lafayette College).
His experiences have inspired him to want to share the story of this important person in our country’s founding with current students, parents, alums, and other members of the college, and the Easton community. Please join us to learn more about our namesake.
This ConnectEd virtual experience can be enjoyed by all members of the Lafayette Community throughout the world. Please register today as space is limited. You will receive a private Zoom link the day before the event through which you can connect either by computer or phone. If you have any questions, please contact the Office of Alumni Relations at alumni@lafayette.edu or (610) 330-5040.
Lafayette Alumni Relations is pleased to offer ConnectEd, a virtual learning community offering live webinars on a variety of professional and personal wellness topics hosted by Lafayette faculty, alumni, and other experts.
You can find out about upcoming events on the Lehigh Valley’s event calendar, by email, or on the Lehigh Valley Chapter's website, Facebook or Instagram pages.