This weekend’s tragedy in Brockport has really hit home. The crazy part is I am not sure why. I didn’t know the victim. I have covered many tragic events like this one. So why is it bothering me so much? This is a question I have been asking myself all weekend.
Is it because I am a SUNY Brockport grad? Is it that I have spent time in that dorm while I was there? Maybe it is seeing all of the scared faces of the freshmen that live in that dorm. Knowing that freshman year is one of the scariest years of your life anyway. Or is it because I have two young girls at home?
These are all things that I thought about over the last two days as I was assigned to cover it. Seeing my college in its darkest hour breaks my heart. Watching the students walking around campus not knowing what to do next is also heart breaking.
Saturday night the students held a small vigil outside the dorm. As I watched from a distance I could see that they had each other in this scary time. I could see that they were starting the process of healing. I am sure they will never fully understand what happened this weekend. It is something they will think about the rest of their lives. These freshmen will have the next 4 years of walking by that dorm, and I am sure each time the memories will come right back.
As a SUNY Brockport alumni member my heart goes out to the family as well as the Brockport campus.
Photojournalist
Will Morgan
