Seated in front of flags of the world in Lehman College’s old gym, Sir Brian Urquhart described the first meetings of the United Nations Security Council there in 1946 as “very exciting and disorganized.”

“It was the first time we had done anything like that,” the former undersecretary general said. “There was universal enthusiasm…for the founding of an organization that everyone in the world wanted to succeed.”

Urquhart and about 100 other former UN officials and staff reunited for a homecoming on May 21. The UN Security Council had met at the then-Bronx campus of Hunter College for five months, from March 25, 1946 to Aug. 18, 1946. The homecoming was also part of Lehman’s 40th anniversary celebration.

The main event was a symposium called “The United Nations: Past, Present and Future,” whose panelists included Urquhart and Margaret Bruce, an original member of the Human Rights Division. Former UN stenographer Betty Teslenko could not attend, but a statement from her was read by Lehman history professor Duane Tananbaum.

Lehman College President Dr. Ricardo Fernandez also rededicated the Peace Grove, planted in 1996 on the 50th anniversary of the UN meeting at the college. Also present were the living members of the Mohicans, the group of roughly 500 original UN staffers.

“As a student, it’s been inspirational to hear from UN members who have been pondering the world,” said Nusrat Chowdury, a senior who aspires to be a math teacher, and who helped rededicate the Peace Grove. “We hope that our efforts can and will help make a better college, community and world.”

Though the UN’s charter was drafted in 1945, the UN’s permanent home in New York was not officially completed until 1951. Mayor William O’Dwyer suggested using Lehman College, which was vacant after having been used by the U.S. Navy during World War II.

In only 15 days, architects and carpenters transformed the gym into formal chambers for the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council. Delegates and UN officials used the classrooms and faculty offices on the bucolic 37-acre campus.

While in the Bronx, the UN is best known for establishing the Eleanor Roosevelt-led Commission on Human Rights, which adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.

Lehman College, with students from more than 90 countries, is representative of the global diversity in the Bronx, New York and the U.S. Though the world has changed significantly since the 1940s, attendees agreed that the UN remains as important as ever.

“Students need to look at what the United Nations does in disasters in their home countries,” Urquhart said, citing the cyclones and tsunami that struck South Asia in recent years.

Pratik Shah, a 19-year-old Kingsbridge resident who helped found a Model UN at SUNY Albany, was inspired by the homecoming. “We need more events like this,” he said, “to bring pride to the diverse communities of the Bronx to help solve problems.”