Junior Meets Senator Bob Dole

3/29/2019

Matthew Pollack ’20 has been interested in World War II history for many years, and so when he had the opportunity to meet retired U.S. Senator Bob Dole, who is a World War II veteran, he jumped at the opportunity.

Leading up to the meeting, which took place over spring break, Pollack read the senator’s book about his experience as a soldier during the Second World War, One Soldier's Story: A Memoir. In reading the book, Pollack said, “Something that really stood out was how much he persevered. He struggled a lot.” Pollack noted that the senator, who is 95 years old and is still working, is “not slowing down, even at his age. I think that represents his entire life. He had a lot of challenges but he never stopped.”

During the meeting, Dole and Pollack talked about the 75th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy, as well as Dole’s thoughts on politics today. “I was excited, of course, but I was very nervous. It’s such a rare experience.”

Pollack has another once-in-a-lifetime experience coming up as well: he is planning to attend the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion at Normandy in June.