Old à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã University's Student Government Association sponsored a vigil Wednesday night at the Webb University Center to honor 12 victims - five of whom were former ODU students - of Friday's shooting at the Virginia Beach Municipal Center.
About 150 people heard reflections about the tragedy and expressions of support and encouragement from Old à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã President John R. Broderick; Ellen Neufeldt, vice president for student engagement and enrollment services; Dymon Bailey, director of legislative affairs and diversity for the SGA; Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer; Patrick Gallagher, deputy chief of the Virginia Beach Police Department; Drew Lumpkin, regional director for U.S. Sen. Mark Warner; and Kevin Tremper, pastor of Crossroads Church in Norfolk.
Neufeldt read the names of the victims, who included four alumni - Tara Welch Gallagher, Alexander Mikhail Gusev, Richard H. Nettleton and Christopher Kelly Rapp - and one former student, Ryan Keith Cox.
"Virginia Beach ... that's our neighbor," Broderick said. "For many at ODU, that's their home."
He noted that nearly 1,000 employees of Old à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã and more than 24,000 alumni live in Virginia Beach. In addition, about 100 faculty and staff members work at Old à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã's Virginia Beach Center in the Princess Anne corridor.
Gallagher expressed the police department's appreciation for the support from the ODU community.
"We feel your love, and in return I want to say we love you, too," he said.
