There was silence on Pepperdine’s campus after the Oct. 17 deaths of four seniors: Niamh Rolston, Peyton Stewart, Asha Weir and Deslyn Williams. Weeping could be heard from the quiet crowds Oct. 19 at community events in the days after the tragedy, including The Well on Oct. 18 and a prayer vigil.
Since the girls’ deaths, campus groups such as Student Government, Counseling Center, Panhellenic, RISE, and University Administration have held events to honor Niamh, Peyton, Asha, and Deslin and to support student organizations.
“Our community has been destroyed,” junior student body president Michael Sugimoto said. “When I walk around campus, I almost feel a sense of emptiness.”
Sugimoto said she took the lead in organizing a candlelight vigil in memory of the girls at the amphitheater on Oct. 19. He said he wants to give the Pepperdine community a space to come together and grieve.
Sugimoto said the most meaningful moment of the event was when students had the opportunity to write notes to the girls on red paper hearts and display the hearts along with flowers on an A-frame sign. .
Since then, SGA has displayed a sign along with a bouquet of flowers in front of the Freedom Wall. Sugimoto said the area by the Freedom Wall will serve as a temporary one until the permanent memorial is completed.
At the memorial service for Niamh, Peyton, Asha and Deslin on Oct. 22, President Jim Gash announced that the university would install four lights around campus to mark each life lost.
“It combines this year’s theme of light with their tragedy. [the girls’] It’s kind of the idea that even though the light goes out, it’s not forgotten,” said Connie Horton, vice president for student affairs.
Sugimoto said more than 1,000 people attended the vigil, including emergency workers who were at the scene of the accident on October 17.
“It was a very beautiful time and a sense of unity,” Sugimoto said.
Sugimoto said the SGA is planning a charity event to support Niamh, Peyton, Asha and Deslin’s memorial fund and give the community another chance to come together. More information about this event will be published in the coming weeks.
Sugimoto said that through this loss, SGA’s responsibility is to speak out on behalf of students to the administration. Sugimoto said the SGA also plans to attend the Malibu City Council meeting on Nov. 6 to advocate for a safer Pacific Coast Highway.
Pepperdine counselor Sparkle Greenhaw said counselors attended the vigil to support the community. She said the counseling center has made volunteering available for other campus-wide events, including memorial services.
“It’s an honor to be in the midst of this terrible loss,” Greenhaw said.
The tragedy affected the entire community, Greenhaw said. As the community continues to grieve for Niamh, Peyton, Asha, and Deslyn, it is important for everyone, both those close to the girls and those not, to normalize feelings of sadness and distraction, and to recognize that grief is non-linear. is important, Greenhaw said.
She said she encourages the community to utilize the counseling center and other resources such as Spiritual Life Hub and RISE throughout this process.
The counseling center has no special events scheduled, Greenhaw said. She said counselors will continue to provide individual and collective support to students, athletics, fraternities, sororities, classrooms and faculty.
Niamh, Peyton, Asha, and Deslin were all members of Alpha Phi sorority. Fraternity and Sorority Coordinator Molly Pompilio said fraternities and sororities on campus are coming together to support each other and those most affected by the girls’ deaths. The Sigma Chi fraternity has changed its philanthropic efforts to support the girls’ memorial fund, Pompilio said.
Pompilio said Sigma Chi held a live auction and music event on Oct. 26 in honor of the girls. At the event, singers performed the girls’ favorite songs. Proceeds from the live auction were donated to the family.
Pompilio said each chapter gave APhi a gift card to buy dinner, donated flowers to the sorority or wrote a card.
“Before coming to Pepperdine, I had worked on numerous college campuses, and this was the most I had ever seen communities rallying around each other,” Pompilio said.
Panhellenic is not planning any events in the near future, Pompilio said. They’re going to wait to see how the community feels before organizing anything.
RISE Director Stacey Lee said RISE also has no plans for future events. RISE hosts Crafternoon at the Lighthouse every other week, Lee said. Ms Lee said RISE held an additional Crafter Noons event the week Niamh, Peyton, Asha and Deslyn died to give the community a chance to come together.
RISE will maintain biweekly crafter noon sessions and yoga every Tuesday and Wednesday at Alumni Park, Lee said.
“We want students to take advantage of our ongoing resources and events in a way that works for them,” Lee said.
While the Office of Student Affairs is not planning any further events to honor Niamh, Peyton, Asha and Deslin, Mr Houghton said he wanted students to know that the care they received from the university never stopped.
“They are [the memorials] We are in the moment, a time for reflection. This is a time for the community to come together,” Horton said. “And the grief doesn’t end here. The shock doesn’t end here. It doesn’t end the need for support.”
Housing and Residence Life RAs and SLAs are supporting students by canceling prayers and some events, while also providing space for residents and student leaders to gather, said Director of Residence Life. one Maura Page said in an Oct. 31 email to Graphic.
Mr Page said HRL would soon move on to a larger and broader support package for the year ahead. She said she encourages students to contact their RA, SLA or RD when they are grieving.
“Please invite someone to join you on this journey,” Page wrote. “You are not alone. Grief affects everyone differently depending on their timeline.”
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Email Millie Orchard: millie.auchard@pepperdine.edu