TAMIU, PILLAR Host Candlelight Vigil Thursday for Orlando Victims
Written by admin, Jun 15, 2016, Comments Off
Courtesy Steve Harmon,
(Laredo, Texas)-Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) and PILLAR will host a community-wide candlelight vigil to honor and remember the victims of Sunday’s tragic events in Orlando, Florida.
The observance will take place Thursday, June 16 at 8:30 p.m. in the Student Center Plaza facing the University’s Lamar Bruni Vergara Memorial Garden.
The event is being organized by the University’s Office of Student Orientation, Leadership and Engagement (SOLE) and is open to the public. Partnering with TAMIU in hosting the event is PILLAR, a Laredo advocacy group for diverse communities with a special focus on bullying and suicide.
The University has extended invitations to other community groups and organizations to join in the observance.
Event organizer, Teresa Renn, associate director, SOLE, said it was suggested by members of the University’s Safe Zone TAMIU.
“After Sunday’s tragedy, the group felt strongly that it was important that we provide an opportunity for our students and our community to join in solidarity with the City of Orlando and our nation,” Renn explained.
Safe Zone is a national program common among institutions of higher education that aims to create communities on campuses where students can feel safe expressing their true selves. It encourages faculty, staff, students and community members to become more aware, active and allied to the concerns of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgendered and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) population.
For more information on Thursday’s event, please contact Renn at 956.326.2280, email teresam.renn@tamiu.edu or visit offices in the Student Center, Suite 224.
