UD plans events to mark 9/11

Sept. 4, 2002--The University of Delaware will mark the anniversary of Sept. 11 with a day of commemorative activities for students, faculty and staff. The day will begin with a solemn tolling of the University carillon from 8:48–9:05 a.m., beginning at the time of the first attack on the World Trade Center in New York a year ago.

Commemorative services are planned at 12:30 and 6 p.m., discussion groups will convene at 8 p.m., the Blood Bank of Delaware will be on campus Sept. 10 and 11, and the University Gallery is organizing a special interactive commemoration called Blue Sky Project. The following day, the University will sponsor a performance of “Ethan’s People,” an award-winning play with themes of tragedy and loss.

The first commemorative service will be held from 12:30–1:30 p.m., in Mitchell Hall. Sponsored by the Religious and Spiritual Life Concerns Caucus and the University Religious Leaders Organization, the service will include liturgy and music.

“This service of remembrance and hope is designed to provide the campus community with the opportunity to gather, to remember and reflect as we continue our paths for healing, hope and peace,” the Rev. Laura Lee Wilson, chair of the caucus, said.

The interfaith service will include opening remarks by University President David P. Roselle, musical selections performed by University musicians, and readings from students, faculty and religious leaders representing the diverse faith communities at UD. A montage of photographs that show how the world has changed in the past year will be shown, and the program will conclude with the singing of “Let There Be Peace on Earth.”

Assembled by Ralph Begleiter, Edward and Elizabeth G. Rosenberg Professor of Communication at UD, the photo montage follows the year’s events, beginning with images depicting the immediate shock in the aftermath of the bombings, followed by photos of the outpouring of sympathy around the world, the U.S. reaction to the bombings and the war in Afghanistan, world reaction to the war, the replacement of the Afghan government, the taking of Kabul and the rebuilding of that country.

At 6 p.m., a Candlelight Commemoration will be held on The Green. Participants will enter Memorial Hall from the north side to view a list of names of UD alumni and friends who died or lost family members in the Sept. 11 attacks and a display of yellow ribbons from the Ribbon Garden that was erected at UD last year in response to 9/11. Participants will exit from the building’s south side where they will be given candles as they gather on The Green for the program. The event is open to the public.

The ceremony will include readings from selected ribbons by students in the Professional Theatre Training Program and reflections from undergraduate and graduate students. Begleiter, who is coordinating the student participation, said the speakers are being encouraged to share forward-looking observations about how the events of 9/11 continue to shape their lives.

“We have asked the students to reflect in hindsight on how the events of 9/11 are changing them as their lives unfold. Are they reading more globally? Are they thinking differently? Are they interacting with internationals in new ways? Are they more observant about world affairs or more inward looking?” Begleiter said.

Student speakers include Anna Christopher, a senior communication major from Hockessin; Maggie Zhang, a second-year graduate student in foreign policy from Beijing; Makeda Benjamin, an exercise science senior from Manhattan; and Piotr Plewa, a second-year graduate student in international relations from Poland.

Student readers, all graduate students in theatre, include Sarah Norman from Zimbabwe, Zaki Abdelhamid from Jordan, Matthew Schwader from Chicago; and Andrea Ferraz from Brazil.

Begleiter and Roselle also will speak during the evening ceremony, as will Ismat Shah, associate professor of materials science and adviser to UD’s Muslim Student Association, and Rabbi Eliezer Sneiderman, UD Chabad.

Faculty who have classes scheduled Wednesday evening may decide to hold class, but they have been asked to honor requests by individual students to be absent and to provide them with opportunities to make up missed work.

After the commemoration, two forums will be held. One, entitled “Casualties at Home: Civil Liberties and Freedom of Speech,” will be facilitated by James J. Magee, chairperson of UD Department of Political Science and International Relations, and Leland Ware, Louis L. Redding Chair for the Study of Law and Public Policy, in Room 111 of Memorial Hall.

The second forum topic, “The UD Campus and the World,” will be facilitated by Lesa Griffiths, faculty director of the Center for International Studies, and Bahram Rajaee, director of international programs and special sessions. This session will be held in 037 Memorial Hall.

The University Gallery will join other museums across the nation sponsoring special events commemorating 9/11. At UD, gallery staff developed the Blue Sky Project, an interactive commemoration that will encourage members of the UD community to express their thoughts and feelings about this day one year later. Special postcards have been printed with one side the same brilliant blue color of the sky in Delaware on that fateful day.

Sept. 11, 2001 "...what struck me about that day was the sky...the brightest blue in months.." Sept. 11, 2002 What are you thinking today?

The gallery is asking that individuals write, draw, glue, tape or staple something to the front of the card that sums up what they are thinking. The postcards are to be returned to the University Gallery and each one will be posted to a special web site [http://www.museums.udel.edu].

“We wanted to create a memorial that was contemplative, healing and that inspired hope, especially in our students,” Belena Chapp, UD director of museums, said.

The postcards will be handed out on campus on Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept. 10–11, by gallery student volunteers will walk around and give them to students, faculty and staff. They also will be distributed at the Candlelight Commemoration and are available by calling 831-8242, e-mailing [bchapp@udel.edu] or by stopping by the University Gallery, second floor, Old College, on Sept. 10–11. They are pre-addressed to the University Gallery, so they just need to be dropped in a campus mail box. If returned from off campus, postage needs to be added.

The Blood Bank of Delaware will hold a blood drive from noon-5 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 10, and from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 11, in the Trabant University Center. The blood drive is sponsored by Sigma Chi and Alpha Chi Omega.

UD's Center for Counseling and Student Development will have extended walk-in hours Sept. 11 for UD students, and staff members will be available at the Candlelight Commemoration.

In addition, the carillon will play patriotic music on the hour throughout the day, Sept. 11, including "My Country 'Tis of Thee," "America the Beautiful" and "The Star-Spangled Banner.

“Ethan's People,” a one-act play by local playwright Richard Gaw, will be performed at 5:30 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 12, in the Bacchus Theatre of the Perkins Student Center, Academy Street, Newark. This event is open to the public.

The play, which won the Best Play award at the 2002 Delaware State Play Festival, centers around the relationships of two couples as they confront the realities of tragedy and loss. “Ethan's People” also represented the state of Delaware at the Eastern States Theatre Festival in Rome, N.Y., in April, and most recently was performed as an off-Broadway showcase at the Producer's Club Grand Theatre in New York City.

The play, directed by award-winning director Laurie J. Bailey, includes local actors Michael Beattie, Andrew Christopulos, Julie Cauffman and Denise Verderosa.

A welcoming reception will begin at 4:45 p.m., and an open discussion with the playwright, director and cast will be held after the performance.

The performance is sponsored by Faculty Staff Assistance Program and the Wellness Center, both at UD.