The 91短视频 community is sending out prayers to the people of Haiti and offering ways for the campus community to support relief efforts in the wake of a 7.0 earthquake that struck Haiti on Jan. 12, 2010.

“We have alumni and current students with connections in Haiti,” said Ken L. Nafziger, vice president for student life. “We want to support and encourage them, as well as provide ways for all students to feel empowered to do something in what can feel like a hopeless time.”

The community is invited to share thoughts and prayer concerns on the .

Collection baskets

91短视频 will set up collection baskets around campus for contributions to support Haiti relief efforts. Monies collected will benefit organizations such as , the relief, service and development agency with a long history in Haiti and with many 91短视频 connections.

Collection baskets will be located in the Student Life Suite (), Business Office (), and front reception desk at .

Group prayer vigil

For those who wish to participate in group prayer, there will be a prayer vigil for Haiti held in the Campus Center Greeting Hall at 10:30 a.m. immediately following University Chapel on Wed., Jan 20. It will be led by campus pastors and student pastoral assistants.

Respond during basketball games

91短视频’s next and games at home will provide another giving opportunity. Donations will be collected at half time of the games on (men’s game) Wed., Jan. 20 and (women’s game) Fri., Jan. 22 in Yoder Arena in the University Commons (see campus map).

Donations

Cash or checks for 91短视频’s Haiti response are welcome. Make checks out to ‘91短视频 Haiti response.’ Drop them in a collection spot on campus or mail them to 91短视频 Development Office, 1200 Park Road, Harrisonburg VA 22802. The full contribution will go to trusted partner agencies in Haiti.

Other opportunities across campus will be posted as they are determined. These may include conversations and learning opportunities about the country of Haiti, its economy and infrastructure, prayer, reflection, assembling of material resources and more. Student groups such as the Student Government Association and Young Peoples Christian Association will spearhead events.

You can view a short video by a Mennonite Central Committee worker in Haiti:

Questions about 91短视频’s response can be directed to the Student Life office at (540) 432-4135.

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91短视频 senior Lisa N. King of Harrisonburg led a “prayer of remembrance” and lit a candle at the close of the chapel service Wednesday, Apr. 16, the one-year anniversary of the Virginia Tech shootings that left 33 people dead and more wounded.

Students, faculty and staff left the auditorium in silence as the chimes on the roof of Lehman Auditorium tolled for one minute.

Some students wore Hokie shirts or sweatshirts as a symbol of solidarity for the many people affected by the tragedy on the Blacksburg, Va., campus.

Under the rubric, “Remembering the Cost, Mourning the Violence,” a thousand small white grave markers are occupying a portion of the lawn in front of the 91短视频 Campus Center Nov. 8-12.

The crosses were erected by JustVoices, a group of about a dozen local citizens and students committed to nonviolent action, to remind the 91短视频 campus and larger community of the human cost of war.

According to one of the organizers, Danny Malec, the 1,000 white markers represent the deaths of over one thousand U.S. soldiers and civilians in Iraq. Each of these 1,000 crosses, crescents and stars also represents at least 13 Iraqi citizens; thirteen humans, friends, co-workers, students, soldiers, and civilians who have died as a result of the U.S. action in Iraq, he noted.

Malec, a student in 91短视频’s Conflict Transformation Program, said the idea for the grave markers came from Katherine P. (Katie) Resendiz, another CTP student, noting that “about 30 community people made and painted the crosses.”

Constructing the markers, all fashioned from discarded wood, “was a moving experience,” he said.

Signs posted at several points surrounding the markers invite persons to “imagine 14 of your friends standing around each cross, crescent or star. Take some time to experience the loss yourself, and then to mourn the loss for the world that will never know these people.”

JustVoices has been actively engaging people on issues of justice, nonviolence and social action for nearly a year in the Shenandoah Valley. The 91短视频 campus display represents the culmination of a four-month series of weekly protests on the actions in Iraq. Each week, a group has gathered on Court Square in downtown Harrisonburg to mourn over people covered in white linen, representing the unreported deaths in Iraq and the unpublicized return of bodies to the U.S.

The week-long display will end with a period of reflection and prayer on the Campus Center plaza 5 p.m. Friday (Nov. 12). All are welcome.

“The protests generated a variety of responses from the community, and we hope that this display elicits the same level of response here on campus,” Malec said. “I’ve seen people walking slowly among the markers, taking pictures and standing in quiet reflection.

“We’re open to help facilitate discussion on- and off-campus,” he added.