It has been two years since Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 students and wounded many others at Virginia Tech. While Virginia Tech’s Office of Recovery and Support has an array of events planned for the day, no public events have been planned at NIU.

For the first anniversary, two months after NIU’s tragedy, about 50 students and administrators traveled to Virginia Tech.

“We continued to try to be supportive as they moved forward,” said Brian Hemphill, vice president of Student Affairs.

This year, however, the support is more individual-based than university-based.

Scott Peska, director of NIU’s Office of Support and Advocacy, said the office sent a care package to Virgina Tech to “show the Huskies4Hokies Spirit.” The package contained a poster board signed by students who were directly affected by the Feb. 14 tragedy, NIU merchandise and candy.

“It was very important for the students directly impacted and the staff to send that care package,” Peska said. The student group Huskies United also sent a care package.

Both Peska and Hemphill described Virginia Tech as a model university for how they dealt with their tragedy.

“Our colleagues at Virginia Tech were providing guidance and support to us during that time,” Hemphill said. “That was extremely helpful and beneficial to each of us at NIU.”

Neither Hemphill nor Peska could say why a university-wide event remembering the Virginia Tech tragedy was not planned. Peska said, however, that does not mean the support for the institution isn’t there.

“We’re expressing our own support in our own individual ways,” Peska said. “We’ll be thinking of them on their day.”

The tragedies of Virginia Tech and NIU have never left the mind of senior communications major Mike DeWitte.

“I’m just hoping the victims’ friends and families find some closure in the aftermath of what had happened,” DeWitte said.

DeWitte said the tragedies have taught him to live one day at a time and “you can’t make any long-term plans for anything.”

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