I don't know if anyone has done a recap of what went on last night (it wasn't at thebatt.com) so I thought I'd share.
I'm bad at estimating crowd size, but I'd say there were about 2000 people there. It was 42 degrees but there was no wind. As everyone walked in, they were giving a candle, but plenty of people brought their own (lots of people carrying around jar candles). Everyone stood on the edge of the sidewalk that makes a circle around the memorial. The families had about 30 chairs inside the memorial that circled the centerpole, and CTs blocked the doors so only the families could go in the center.
Then all of a sudden at about 2:30, one of the family members, a white-haired lady, just yelled at the top of her lungs for everyone to "come on in." And that's what everyone did. The circle was easily filled, with some people still left standing on the hills to the north and west. This woman said a few prayers, and talked about importance of loving life. A few other family members spoke up, interjecting with a "God Bless the Aggie Spirit." And I remember one father, of Jeremy Frampton (I hope that's right), just yelling his sons name at the top of his lungs.
Then we sang Amazing Grace, and the Spirit of Aggieland, and finally the War Hymn. And when everyone thought everything was over, all of a sudden bagpipes started playing Amazing Grace from somewhere off in the dark. After this, the families thanked everyone that showed up, and people stood around and laughed and talked until about 3:45. I heard someone from the Traditions Council talking about how none of this was planned, and that the families kind of did with it what they wanted.
Sorry if this is short and a little to the point, I just wanted to get it out there before I headed to work. And God Bless Texas A&M.
I'm bad at estimating crowd size, but I'd say there were about 2000 people there. It was 42 degrees but there was no wind. As everyone walked in, they were giving a candle, but plenty of people brought their own (lots of people carrying around jar candles). Everyone stood on the edge of the sidewalk that makes a circle around the memorial. The families had about 30 chairs inside the memorial that circled the centerpole, and CTs blocked the doors so only the families could go in the center.
Then all of a sudden at about 2:30, one of the family members, a white-haired lady, just yelled at the top of her lungs for everyone to "come on in." And that's what everyone did. The circle was easily filled, with some people still left standing on the hills to the north and west. This woman said a few prayers, and talked about importance of loving life. A few other family members spoke up, interjecting with a "God Bless the Aggie Spirit." And I remember one father, of Jeremy Frampton (I hope that's right), just yelling his sons name at the top of his lungs.
Then we sang Amazing Grace, and the Spirit of Aggieland, and finally the War Hymn. And when everyone thought everything was over, all of a sudden bagpipes started playing Amazing Grace from somewhere off in the dark. After this, the families thanked everyone that showed up, and people stood around and laughed and talked until about 3:45. I heard someone from the Traditions Council talking about how none of this was planned, and that the families kind of did with it what they wanted.
Sorry if this is short and a little to the point, I just wanted to get it out there before I headed to work. And God Bless Texas A&M.
