Student Memorial - Western Illinois University

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Each year, Inter-Hall Council (IHC) and the Division of Student Services sponsors a memorial tree planting ceremony to remember WIU students who passed away during the current academic year. This year, the memorial tree planting ceremony will be combined with the 2020-2021 ceremony due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The students listed below will be remembered at next year's ceremony.

If a student is lost, Inter-Hall Council plants a tree in honor of them. That tree will forever memorialize the roots those students made at Western Illinois University, and they will continue to breathe life into each new generation of Leathernecks. The tree, along with a plaque beneath it engraved with their names, will remind all of us that we are all part of one Leatherneck family. We all rejoice when one of us thrives, and we all grieve when one of us is lost. We all feel sorrow at the loss of these students and the wonderful contributions they made to Western and those around them.

Robert L. Veninga, in his book, “A Gift of Hope”, says, “One day we feel as though the dark clouds have lifted, but the next day they have returned. One moment we can smile, but a few hours later the tears emerge. It is true that as we take two steps forward in our journey, we may take one or more steps backward. But when one has faith that the spring thaw will arrive, the winter winds seem to lose some of their punch.”

“Human pain does not let go of its grip at one point in time. Rather it works its way out of our consciousness over time. There is a season of sadness. A season of tranquility. A season of hope.” - Robert L. Veninga