TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WFLA) — In the wake of the tragic mass shooting at Florida State University some weeks back, students find hope over the weekend, turning their tassels as they step into their futures.
The graduation weekend was an occasion to embrace new beginnings for these students while also contemplating the recent tragedy.
It was a historic weekend at Florida State University, with this year’s graduating class marking the largest in FSU’s history. Students crossed the stage, moved their tassels, and celebrated alongside family and friends, preparing to embark on the next chapter of their lives.
“There’s no other group of people that had to go through what you had to. You are tough,” said Richard McCullough, FSU President.
Graduation weekend comes two weeks after the devastating campus shooting that killed two and injured six others, some of them students at FSU.
“The tragic act of senseless violence was hard to understand. We lost Robert Morales, a dedicated FSU employee, Tiru Chabba a visitor from South Carolina, multiple people were injured and many were shaken,” said McCullough.
Ever since the devasting incident, the Seminole community has united, holding vigils, leaning on one another for support, and healing together.
“We lost members of our FSU family, we are still mourning, we are still healing. In the days and weeks that followed I have seen something truly remarkable, I’ve seen students checking in on one another, reaching out when they need support, I’ve seen strangers and community members attending vigils, and members and staff holding space for our community. In our hardest moments, we choose to stand together. That is what ‘unconquered’ means,” said Jackson Boisvert, Student Body President.
Unconqured, a word that students now say has taken a much deeper meaning in the past several weeks.
Students and members of the FSU community left this weekend with their heads held high, taking with them years’ worth of memories and lessons learned.
