Virginia Tech Massacre Remembrance
By: Jake | April 14, 2008 | Category: Home and Family
I am sure I'm not the only person whose stomach goes into a knots when I think about the tragedy at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007. As you probably know, 32 students and professors were gunned down in a residence hall and academic building that day by an individual who was in severe need of mental health services.
I'm an alumnus of Virginia Tech ('01 and '03) and while I did not know any of the victims, I knew people who did (one of the victims went to my high school and was a classmate of my brother). My pain over this tragedy was nowhere near as deep or harsh as those of the victims or their friends and families, but the tragedy was still hard to digest. Virginia Tech was one of those rare places of peace in my mind and it was torn to pieces.
Wednesday will mark a year since the tragedy and Virginia Tech will hold a "Day of Remembrance." The university has canceled classes "to allow students to remember those lost in their own way." There will be events around the country for people to remember those lost.
The thing I've learned from this tragedy is that if I see someone who seems down or withdrawn I try to talk to them instead of ignoring them like I might normally do. I never know what effect this will have, but generally it help knocks them out of their funk.
I notice a lot of links to mental health services on the Virginia Tech remembrance page for students who may still need to talk to someone about the tragedy. I've never had to refer someone to a mental health professional, but I am not afraid to since lots of worse things can happen if I don't.
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We welcome your comments and expect that our conversation will follow the general rules of respectful civil discourse. This is a moderated blog, and we will only post comments from bloggers over 13 years of age that relate to topics on Gov Gab: Your U.S. Government Blog. We will review comments for posting within one business day. You are fully responsible for everything that you submit in your comments, and all posted comments are in the public domain. We do not discriminate against any views, but we reserve the right not to post comments.
Posted by REMEBERING VENGENANCE IS MINE SAITH THE LORD on April 14, 2008 at 04:31 PM EDT #
I'm so glad you wrote about this. We need to be reminded of these events and not treat it like "just another news story." You and your friends at Virginia Tech will be in my thoughts today.
Posted by clutter_buster on April 16, 2008 at 06:14 AM EDT #