At 2:03 p.m., 37 students emerged from the Hall of Languages, each carrying a red rose. The bells chimed 35 times, but the almost 200 people watched in complete silence as the 35 Remembrance and two Lockerbie Scholars proceeded to the Place of Remembrance on the cloudy Friday afternoon.
The Remembrance Scholars were at the Rose-Laying Ceremony to represent the students who died in the Pan Am Flight 103 terrorist attack over Lockerbie, Scotland, and the two Lockerbie Scholars — Lauren Carruthers and Alicia Pagan — were there to represent the Lockerbie 11 and Andrew McClune, a Lockerbie Scholar who died in 2002 while studying at SU.
On Dec. 21, 1988, Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie when a bomb in the cargo hold went off as part of a terrorist attack. All 259 passengers and crew, along with 11 people on the ground, were killed.
Chancellor Kent Syverud and David Seaman, SU’s dean of libraries, joined a group of people including students, past Remembrance Scholars and the families of the victims who paid their respects as Avery Head played “Flower of Scotland” on the bagpipes.
Emily Steinberger | Editor-in-Chief
“Thirty-three years later, we still mourn,” said Morgan Eaton, who represents Amy Shapiro. “But amid the pain and longing are memories, sanctuaries for our sorrow, comfort when peace feels distant, a warm reminder of a passing embrace. These memories, when made and shared, have life.”
Each Remembrance Scholar pledged to look back and act forward in remembrance of the victim they represent before laying a single red rose on the Remembrance Wall.
As Ifeyinwa Ojukwu, who represents Gretchen Joyce Dater, laid her rose on the wall, the sun shone past the clouds that filled the sky, illuminating the Place of Remembrance and the people who came to honor those killed in the attack. In attendance were many previous years’ Remembrance Scholars, some of whom looked up to the sunshine.
The two Lockerbie Scholars reminded the crowd gathered around the memorial that the memory of the tragedy is still very much alive in Lockerbie despite the three decades of healing the community has had.
The two Lockerbie Scholars reminded the crowd gathered around the memorial that the memory of the tragedy is still very much alive in Lockerbie despite the three decades of healing the community has had. Emily Steinberger | Editor-in-Chief
Pagan, who represents McClune, said that the attack shook so many beyond Lockerbie and Syracuse. The amount of loss from that day will never be forgotten, she said.
“If you walk down Lockerbie’s High Street today, it looks nothing like it did 33 years ago,” said Carruthers, who represents the Lockerbie 11. “I’ve seen the patchwork covering the hole that had to be filled when an engine landed up at Rosebank (Crescent). I’ve seen the patched up walls at Sherwood Crescent that the wings and fuel tanks destroyed when they landed. I’ve heard the stories of that night, as well as the days after.”
After the scholars lined up together behind the monument, attendees were invited to lay their own flowers. Chancellor Kent Syverud and David Seaman, SU’s dean of libraries, joined a group of people including students, past Remembrance Scholars and the families of the victims who paid their respects as Avery Head played “Flower of Scotland” on the bagpipes.
Chaplain Amir Durić closed the ceremony with a message of helping all of humanity through honoring people one at a time. He said the memories of those who died in the attack on Pan Am 103 will transform the world to one of peace and justice.
“Generations to come will rather tend to remember those who left the life as their legacy than those who contribute to suffering, mischief and darkness,” Durić said. “Their legacies inspire us to live the fullness of present life, and turn toward the light in ourselves, in each other and the world.”
Banner videos by Emily Steinberger, Editor-in-chief; edited by Abby Weiss, Digital Managing Editor
