Athens, Ga. – Twenty-six University of Georgia students, faculty and staff members who died since last April will be honored at the university’s annual candlelight memorial service May 3 at 7 p.m. on the steps of the Chapel.
UGA President Jere W. Morehead will lead the service, called “Georgia Remembers … a Candlelight Memorial.” Names of each of the 15 students and 11 faculty and staff members will be read aloud, followed by a toll of the Chapel bell and the lighting of a candle.
Names will be read by David Shipley, chair of the executive committee of University Council; Michael Lewis, chair of the executive committee of the Staff Council; and Houston Gaines, president of the Student Government Association.
Members of the university’s Arch Society will light candles as each name is read aloud. Lindsay Atkinson, lead associate director with the Wesley Foundation, will deliver an opening prayer and Father John Coughlin of the Catholic Center will deliver a closing prayer. At the conclusion of the ceremony, the flames from the Arch Society members’ candles will be passed to attendees so they can light their own candles of remembrance.
The Southern Wind Quintet from the Hugh Hodgson School of Music will provide music, and the university’s Army ROTC will present the colors and ring the bell.
Students whose names will be read, along with their hometowns and the areas of study they were pursuing, are:
• Emmanuel Agyei Agyemang, a third-year student from Savannah majoring in chemistry;
• Khaled Mohamad Alsafadi, a fourth-year student from Suwanee majoring in psychology;
• Kayla Leigh Canedo, a second-year student from Alpharetta majoring in psychology;
• John Michael Eden, a third-year student from Winder majoring in computer science;
• Brittany Katherine Feldman, a second-year student from Alpharetta majoring in human development and family science;
• Allison Thomas Johnson, a fourth-year student from Jonesboro majoring in English;
• Harrison Austin Jones, a fourth-year student from Columbus majoring in biochemistry and molecular biology;
• Jonathan Gray Kicklighter, a first-year student from Colquitt majoring in chemistry;
• Samantha Kaye Pohl, a master’s student from Halletsville, Texas, studying avian medicine;
• Caroline Daniel Ramsey, a doctoral student from Athens studying English;
• Halle Grace Scott, a third-year student from Dunwoody majoring in marketing;
• Cara McKim Seckman, a first-year student from Marietta majoring in advertising and public relations;
• Christina Devon Semeria, a second-year student from Milton majoring in exercise and sports science;
• John Kyle Spencer, a master’s student from Columbus studying conservation ecology and sustainable development; and
• Lei Wang, a doctoral student from Beijing, China, studying infectious diseases.
Faculty and staff whose names will be read, along with the positions they held, are:
• Robert John Antonelli, information technology director with the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography;
• Robert Andrew Bahn, research professional in forestry and natural resources;
• Debra Inglett Belvin, administrative associate in agricultural and applied economics, Griffin campus;
• Glenn Roger Clements, fire safety inspector in the Environmental Safety Division;
• Kevin Blair Garrison, project manager in the Office of the Vice President for Research;
• Joseph Ernest Lowe IV, constituent based director in the College of Pharmacy;
• Jacqueline Virginia Mitchell, administrative assistant in human resources;
• Charles Allen Nasworthy, director of the 4-H and Youth Center in Hampton;
• Patrick Theodore Nolan, carpenter in the Facilities Management Division;
• Desiree Andrea Hammond Oliver, research professional with the Center for Family Research; and
• Howard John Wiarda, professor in the School of Public and International Affairs.
The candlelight memorial service is coordinated by the Office of the Dean of Students within UGA Student Affairs.
In the event of rain, the service will be held in the Tate Student Center Grand Hall.
UGA Student Affairs
The Division of Student Affairs comprises 19 campus departments that enhance the learning environment for students at the University of Georgia by stimulating the learning process, integrating the in-class and out-of-class experiences, promoting an environment conducive to growth and discovery and facilitating intellectual, spiritual, social, occupational, physical, cultural and emotional development. For more information, see http://studentaffairs.uga.edu.
