SU, SUNY ESF community members honor those who died at annual Service of Commemoration
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Syracuse University and SUNY ESF community members gathered at Hendricks Chapel Tuesday to honor the 119 lives lost over the past year for Hendricks’ annual Service of Commemoration.
The service provided a space to acknowledge those who have passed and facilitate the mourning process, according to the SU Community Calendar website.
“Today, we honor those beloved members of our campus community who recently passed away. And as we honor them today, we are reminded of the risk we take for loving,” Hendricks Chapel Dean Brian Konkol said. “For when we love someone, we are open to the possibility of eventually having to grieve the loss of someone.”
The memorial featured remarks from several SU and ESF community leaders, performances from student musicians and the annual candle-lighting ceremony conducted by members of SU’s Student Association.
Hendricks Chapel held its first Service of Commemoration in 2017 to contribute to SU Remembrance Scholars’ commitment to raise awareness about the victims lost in the 1988 Pan Am 103 bombing, which killed 35 SU Abroad students onboard.
Throughout the ceremony, the speakers lit four candles: one representing SU students, another representing SU community members and the other two representing ESF students and community members. After lighting the candles, the speakers listed the names of all of those who died and asked the audience to “remember them.”
“The greatest offering we can give to another person is giving back our lives for the chance to create a new beginning … through our collective remembering and grieving,” said Otto Sutton, a Remembrance Scholar and Student Association Board of Elections Chair.
Kira Reed, an associate professor at the Whitman School of Management, lit the first candle — which represented the university’s faculty, staff, trustees and retirees who have died within the past year. Following the lighting, SU Vice Chancellor Gretchen Ritter recited their names.
Yasmin Nayrouz, vice president of SA, lit a candle to honor recently deceased SU students. SA President William Treloar then read the names of five SU students who passed: Matthew Benedict, Megan Cartier, Annie Eisner, Nicole Ellerbeck and Liam Zoghby.
Joanie Mahoney, ESF’s president, read the names of the faculty, staff, trustees and retirees from ESF who died during the period.
SUNY ESF Mighty Oak Student Assembly VP Eden Garnder then lit a candle and recited the name of an ESF student who died, Sean Huckins.
Unlike previous years, Chancellor Kent Syverud did not give remarks at the ceremony. Instead, Ritter spoke, highlighting the historic nature of Hendricks Chapel and the importance of remembering the lives lost and the legacy they led in SU’s tight-knit community.
“Syracuse University truly is a community. We gather in this building — the heart of our candidates, where generations have gathered for nearly 100 years,” Ritter said. “They called this place home and all of them in ways big and small made Syracuse University what it is. Today, we remember with gratitude, their contributions and commitment to this place we love.”
Sutton also highlighted the importance of “looking back and acting forward” – which is the motto of SU’s Remembrance Week.
Sutton said he believes remembrance and memorial work is a central aspect of the Remembrance and Lockerbie Scholars Program ethos, to which he said SU has been dedicated since the Pan Am bombing.
During her remarks, Mahoney spoke on the importance of the close ties between SU and ESF and recalled that she studied abroad in London as an SU student just two years before the tragic plane crash in 1988.
“As President of ESF, I can tell you that our partnership with Syracuse means so much to our college. We share a campus, a community and a special bond. We celebrate each other’s accomplishments and feel each other’s losses,” Mahoney said. “What makes it so special is our commitment to improving the world we live in and preserving it for future generations.”
As the ceremony ended, attendees went outside and placed white roses on the Hendricks sign on the Shaw Quadrangle to show respect to those who passed away.
Konkol solemnly reminded the audience that life and love is a gift.
“Perhaps the greatest tragedy is not to lose those who we have loved. But the greatest tragedy of all would be to not have loved at all,” Konkol said.
Corrections:A previous version of this article misattributed a quote from Otto Sutton to Dean Brian Konkol. A previous version of also included a comment from Sutton on the ethos of the university. This was incorrect. Sutton commented on the ethos of the Remembrance and Lockerbie Scholars Program. The Daily Orange regrets these errors.
