As students, faculty and staff united at Wednesday evening’s candlelight vigil, grief filled the air due to the tragic terrorist act that shattered the nation Tuesday.
“I wanted to have an organized response for faculty, staff and the students, so they would feel comfort and unity,” said Kim Bushore-Maki, coordinator of special outreach programs in ETSU’s Counseling Center.
The event was organized by ETSU’s Critical Incident Response Team and the Counseling Center.
The event started with 8 Bucs Worth singing “MLK,” which was written after the death of Martin Luther King Jr., said Lane Blevins, a member of the group.
As the group sang, the reaction throughout the crowd was solemn.
One student who attended the event said the vigil helped people realize that the terrorism that destroyed the World Trade Center in New York and damaged the Pentagon in Washington is an actuality and brought it closer to home. Other students felt that the vigil united the community and the university so they could mourn together.
“I came to see the unity and to be with people who wanted to be together during the tragedy,” said Jennifer Reese, a former faculty member.
As John Lennon’s “Imagine” was played during a moment of silence, people closed their eyes in meditation, looked at the sky or bowed their heads in mourning.
All were grieving in different ways.
Student Amanda Smith, said that the unity of her peers helped her during the grieving process because she knew “that there are other people who cared.”
Candles were lit to reflect hope, peace and the promise that there will always be someone to lean on during a time of need. While the candles were lit John Collins sang “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot,” which added a religious tone to the service. Also, a woman from the ETSU Gospel Choir sang, “His Eyes on the Sparrow.”
John Collins and the ETSU Bluegrass Band closed the ceremony on a patriotic note with a performance of “This Land is Your Land, This Land is My Land,”
“This song was what everyone felt like when they realized that their nation had been vandalized,” one student said.
Many students, faculty and staff who participated in the vigil described how they felt and how they were coping with the situation.
“The response was to reflect the compassion of our student body, and we were very proud of students and faculty,” Bushore-Maki said.

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