Bluffton Tragedy Touches EMU

On the Friday morning before their spring break, students at Bluffton University woke up, finished homework, and headed to their 8:00 a.m. classes, only to find out that their college baseball team had been in a terrible accident.

Classes were cancelled for the day. A hush spread over the campus; people were crying and calling friends and family. An e-mail announced a service at 10:00 a.m. for the campus community. Students filled the gym silently and the administration provided everyone with information regarding the accident and the measures the college would be taking. The community gathered together to pray. Faculty members were available for counseling, and the dorms were kept open longer (they would have closed Friday night for spring break) to provide a place for students to come together.

Early Friday morning, March 2, a bus carrying the Bluffton University baseball team crashed in Atlanta, Georgia on their way to Sarasota, Florida to play in the same tournament EMU's team played in over spring break. Four players, the bus driver and his wife were killed instantly and one other student passed away later in the week due to sustained injuries.

Bluffton University is one of five colleges and universities affiliated with the Mennonite Church and is a sister college to EMU and Goshen, Bethel, and Hesston Colleges. This accident has put BU, a small Christian school in the tiny town of Bluffton, OH, on the map with an incredible amount of media coverage.

On a campus slightly bigger than EMU's, a tragedy like this makes a large impact on the community. Everyone knows everyone else, so while not everyone knew one of the team members involved in the crash, everyone knows someone who knew them. One Bluffton senior commented, "Waking up to the news on CNN was like a bad dream. It didn't feel real until the candlelight vigil, where I watched friends and family cry as the names of their loved ones were read."

EMU showed support for its sister college in many different ways. A prayer station was set up in the Campus Center for updates and information regarding the tragedy. President Swartzendruber flew to Sarasota to preach at a local Mennonite church with some Bluffton parents and the EMU baseball team in attendance. He also flew to Bluffton for the memorial service on March 12 along with athletic director Dave King.

Most admirably, the EMU baseball team, with "Bluffton" written on their hats, played and won the two baseball games BU was scheduled to play. "We have this shared experience that we will never forget," said Swartzendruber."Although painful, this will provide a bond that we'll remember forever." As students returned to Bluffton's campus on Sunday evening after a week of spring break, purple ribbons had been tied around the trees and flowers had been placed by the baseball field to serve as a reminder. The campus memorial service, held on Monday night, March 12, packed out the gym with over 2000 people in attendance, complete with TV cameras and reporters.

The "Kiva," a gathering place and heavily trafficked area on Bluffton's campus, similar to EMU's Campus Center Greeting Hall, has been filled with thousands of notes, signatures, and flowers offering prayers and support to the Bluffton University community. Reflecting on the kindness and generosity exhibited to BU, one Bluffton junior commented, "It's just a reminder that there's so much good in the world - that there's so many people willing to help."