While on temporary duty in Uganda, I was eating at an outside restaurant on the shore of Lake Victoria in the city of Entebbe, when I noticed a person with an Auburn t-shirt. I was wearing my tiger eyes base ball cap and said a friendly “War Eagle”. We talked for a few minutes and both lamented that “Who would have thought on in the middle of Africa, two Auburn Tigers would meet”. I personally think it was as impressive as Stanley saying Livingstone “Doctor Livingston I presume” in East Africa over 130 years ago.

Attached is the picture of two proud War Eagles at the restaurant in Entebbe, Uganda on the shore of Lake Victoria.

War Eagle,

Stanley J. Koryta Jr,
Class of 1990

We were on a trip to Paris with a TV station out of Columbus, Ga.. We did not know if we would know anyone but were pleasantly surprised to find the majority of the group were Auburn alums. The day we went to The Louvre we all separated to save time seeing what each individual preferred to view. From the top of the steps, I saw part of our group downstairs so I yelled “WAR EAGLE”. Well, the French security guard did not think that was funny so he rushed toward me and made me sit down on the steps while he called more security. I guess the word WAR scared them or something. Now, I am ashamed to admit that I did Minor in French at Auburn but a long, long time ago (1970) so my broken french in my very southern drawl did not help my situation at all. I finally smiled and laughed and laid on my Southern charm to convince them that I was Not a terrorist, just a Rabid Auburn graduate.

-Patricia Smith Faulkenberry
Class of 1974

Last March, I traveled to the country of Nepal. I was part of an expedition that was climbing Mount Everest. I wasn’t scheduled to go to the top, but about 75% of the way. Other members of our team did summit.

To even get to Everest base camp, there is a ten day 70 mile hike through the very remote portions of Nepal. Not a road for hundreds of miles, barely any electricity, basically a third world existence. I was one day away from base camp, climbing a hill called “Thukla.” The local Sherpa people say the hill is so steep and gains so much elevation that it even gives yaks headaches (headaches are common when ascending to much altitude in one day).

As I trudged up the hill with my backpack over my shoulders, the cold wind whipping against my face and laboring for each breath and step, out of no where I hear, “WAR EAGLE!” Of course I was shocked because I had forgotten I was wearing my Auburn hat. It was a very surreal moment. Here I am on the other side of the planet, no phones, electricity, roads, and barely trudging up this laborious hill, and I hear those common words. I look up and there stood Ryan Ross, another former Auburn student.

We exchanged War Eagles and got to talking. Turns out he went to Auburn for two years, but transferred to Colorado. He was part of another IMAX film team that was on the mountain to do research on climber’s physiology. The new IMAX is scheduled to be in theaters in 2009. We were even in the same freshman class together.

In a place where you look for inspiration to take even one more step up the mountain, hearing these words certainly inspired me to keep on heading on.

I just thought I would share after seeing the latest TV ads with the man and the airplane. These are wonderful ads and really share the common bond we all as Auburn people have. I hope you find this one as interesting! I have included a picture of me at Everest Camp 1 with my hat on.

Thank you very much for reading and, “WAR EAGLE”

-Grant

My grandsons live in South Carolina. They are Auburn fans !! The 6 year, Alex and I were doing “Knock Knock” jokes by telephone. I said, “Alex, Gammy has to go”.
“Ok, Gammy. RRRROOOOLLLLLLLL EEAAGGLLEE !!

Daddy said, “Alex, why did you say that”?

“Daddy, I’ve got to make Gammy and Grandmomma both happy”.

Yes, I am Gammy, the Auburn fan. His Grandmomma is a Bama fan.

-Donna M.

My husband and I (both Auburn graduates) were returning home from Los Angles from our honeymoon 15 years ago. The Auburn/Georgia game had been on the night before, and we stayed in the hotel watching the Tigers win. Bo Jackson was now playing for the LA Raiders, and we happened to pass the gate at the airport where the Raiders were flying out for their game that weekend. We saw Bo with his teammates across the concourse, and lots of people/photographers were trying to get his attention. My husband and I yelled “Bo, War Eagle.” He looked up, smiled, excused himself from the other players and came over to talk to us. He asked us if we had seen Auburn play the night before, saying that UGA/AU matchup is always a great game. We talked about being there the night he came back to campus after he had won the Heisman Trophy. We said we had given up on studying for finals and went to meet him at Sewell Hall. Unfortunately, we had to get going to catch our plane home. He was great to come and talk to us, knowing that with the phrase “War Eagle”, he was talking to Auburn family even though we were thousands of miles from the plains of Auburn. My husband and I were upset when we got on our plane and realized we didn’t get a picture, autograph or anything, but at the moment, Bo was just part of the Auburn family, not a celebrity.
Deirdre and Edward

A friend of mine and I were taking off a summer quarter from AU in 1996. We were going to work at Mt Ranier National Park in the state of Washington. We left several days early in an effort to travel other parts of the country. We were at a gas station in Missoula, Montana and I was wearing an Auburn sweatshirt. As I was pumping the gas into my car, I notice a woman that appeared to be in upper 50’s running rapidly toward me. I look over at my friend and he has a weird look on his face as do I. The lady gets about 4 feet away from me and reaches out her arms as if she wants a hug. She continues moving toward me and wraps her arms around me. I am thinking to myself, should I know this person? After about 2 seconds, she loudly says ” War Eagle, I have been living here now for 20 years and you are the first person I’ve seen with an Auburn shirt on.” I am a bit astonished by this, and I kindly reply ” War Eagle to you” The smile on the lady’s face was priceless and I enjoy sharing the story whenever possible.
Michael

I was running in the 1988 Women’s Olympic Trials Marathon in Pittsburgh and was about ready to drop out because I was still weak from having been sick prior to the race. At around the 15-mile mark, I heard a big WAR EAGLE, and I looked up and saw a couple who had obviously seen my name and hometown in the paper. I wish I could have seen the smile on my face! There was only time for me to yell WAR EAGLE back, but I perked up and went on to accomplish my goal of finishing in the top 50 (31st) and ran my second fastest marathon time. All because of two words.
Kim

It was the summer before my sophomore year of high school and my family and I were visiting England and Scotland. We were in London for the day and walking around. We went to a park where we saw these people standing on chairs speaking on politics, religion, etc. Come to find out, you cannot speak out against the Queen (King) if you are standing on British soil. So, they get around this rule by standing on a chair or box at least a foot off of the ground. So, I stood there and kind of listened to this man argue with another man about something the Queen was doing, and then one of the men arguing looked at me and looked at my Auburn Football t-shirt, and he stopped completely mid-argument to say “War Eagle” to me. Of course, I responded back with a heartfelt “War Eagle.” We smiled at each other and then he proceeded to finish his argument, and I just walked away laughing. I think I got more “War Eagles” over there than anyone could imagine. It kept me smiling the entire trip and also has been one of the memories that has lasted from that trip. Thanks for letting me share my story and War Eagle!!!
Clay

My wife and I (both Auburn grads) were in Maui for our honeymoon. We were hiking to a waterfall and were in the middle of a bamboo forest, miles away from civilization. We were discussing how we felt like we were in the middle of nowhere and how we hadn’t seen another human in probably 3 hours. About that time, we saw a pair of hikers coming toward us through the forest. As they passed, the man looked at me, saw my Auburn hat, and said, “War Eagle!” It just goes to show that no matter how far from home you are, no matter how far out in the wilderness you are, there’s always a fellow Auburner around the corner….
Adam

I walked directly into a fellow Auburn student on 5th Avenue in New York City across from St. Patrick’s Cathedral. We’re both accounting majors, however, he was interviewing with Ernst and Young and I was just on vacation. He got the job and I’m planning my next vacation.
Brandon