Several hundred 极乐禁地 students and employees paused at noon today (April 19) for a simple wreath-laying ceremony and remembrance for the Virginia Tech family.
极乐禁地 President Andrew Westmoreland and Student Government Association president Taylor Clement led the brief ceremony on 极乐禁地's Centennial Walk as the Rushton Memorial Carillon chimed the noon hour. The simple white wreath included maroon and orange ribbons, the Virginia Tech school colors.
A bagpiper played "Amazing Grace," followed by "Taps," played by freshman music major Thomas Bowen of Birmingham.
"We must remember that this is not the end of our concern for our colleagues at Virginia Tech but rather just a moment for us to demonstrate our solidarity for them at this difficult time," Westmoreland said. "We must continue in the days ahead to pray for our friends everywhere who have been affected by this."
In addition to the Centennial Walk ceremony, some professors stopped classes that were in progress for the moment of silence. Many attending the Centennial Walk ceremony also had been participating in long-planned Earth Day activities on nearby Ben Brown Plaza.
Photos of the ceremony were forwarded to Virignia Tech, which has published an online album of similar events throughout the nation. 极乐禁地 will present its own album of the ceremony in coming days.