As the new school year begins and Greek life recruitment commences, one fraternity will not be a part of the process.

On June 12, 2018, Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) was found responsible for charges that included hazing and physical assault. Concerns were raised after various social media posts were shared online on Maine Day, which occurs on the Wednesday before finals every spring to celebrate the University of Maine community through service and school pride.

“I found out about that on Maine Day and got additional information the following day. I met with the group [SAE] later in the day on Thursday, and the nature of the concern, of course, was that Maine Day occurs the week before finals, so the timing was particularly precarious, so I met with the chapter and the process was that they were interimly suspended,” said Kenda Scheele, assistant vice president and senior associate dean of students at the University of Maine.

It has not yet been confirmed what actions were committed by the fraternity to cause these allegations, or whether new members were involved. An interim suspension means that the suspension is supposed to be short action, which is a punishment that is applicable to both individuals and student organizations.

After an investigation conducted by Scheele and the Conduct Code Committee (CCC), SAE was found responsible for the following charges: violation of the hazing policy, violation of the drug and alcohol policy, endangering the health and safety, and physical assault. The fraternity  was also charged with fear of physical or imminent harm, but was not found responsible for this allegation.

“Their outcomes were restriction from campus, meaning that they can’t operate as a fraternity, and they can’t occupy their house,” Scheele said. “Another was disciplinary probation, which was written out as ‘permanent separation subject to the right of review after a minimum of five years from the University, Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity is hereby dismissed from the University for a minimum of five years.’”

When the case was brought to the attention of Scheele, she took immediate action.

“These are significant allegations, so we wanted to make sure that we got the right information, got as much information as could be gotten so that we could make the best decision that we could make,” Scheele said.

Representatives from both the UMaine chapter and the National chapter of SAE were unavailable to comment.

“I don’t want it to be looked at as Maine is anti-Greek or that this is an indictment against fraternities or Greek life because I truly believe that Greek life adds a lot of flavor to any college campus,” Scheele said. “And I know some schools have taken the opportunity for pretty good reasons on their part when people have died.”

Scheele continued, “If anything, I would say that anytime that something significant like this happens, I hope this causes people to wake up and see something and say something. We have to look out for each other because we are a community and the best way to keep everybody safe is to see something and say something.”

“I applaud the students that came to me the day after Maine Day based on the information that they saw on social media. You never know if the information that you see on social media is true or not and they did the right thing coming to us and allowing us to investigate.”

UMaine offers informational sessions on hazing through the Student Wellness Resource Center. These presentations are typically given to first-year students, athletes and Greek life organizations, but are offered to all students. For more information on these sessions, visit https://umaine.edu/wellness/programs/.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students Robert Q. Dana has known President Susan J. Hunter for over 30 years. When the two began their careers at UMaine, Dean Dana worked in substance abuse services while President Hunter was hired as an adjunct professor.

“My first impression of her was that she was funny and she was quizzical and very genuine. I liked her then, and I like her now. She’s very easy to approach,” Dana said.

“When she and I started really working together when she was associate provost for undergraduate education, and she really brought a sense of humanity and caring to that position,” Dana said. “She did a lot of collaboration with us in student affairs, helping to bridge the academic affairs and student affairs to make the whole student experience. And since she became associate provost, she was the provost, and then she went into the system. She’s always kept working, we’ve worked on accreditation policies, we’ve worked on strategic plans, and she’s just got a very positive sense about the future and UMaine students and about how good it should and can be. And then of course, when she became president, she encouraged me to continue to transform the student experience every day and she’s been a great supporter in that respect.”

What many will miss the most about President Hunter is her overall presence around campus. “She will leave behind a sense that the University of Maine is a real gem and that for students, it’s the most important place in the world. And that it’s a really valuable place for the state and the nation and really the world. She will leave a sense that it’s okay to be nice, and kind and open and I think she just gives a humanizing effect,” Dana said.

Dana and Hunter have worked together for decades. During that time, the two developed quite a very personal relationship with one another. “She and I have been working together for such a long time that we have sort of a very easy rapport, I would call it a friendship, so she knows what we’re trying to achieve with students, what are the upsides, downsides, and complexities,” Dana said. “So, you know, there becomes a certain easiness of communication that I’ll miss. I’ll miss her great sense of humor, her friendship, her compassion, and it’s always difficult with transitions because when you have people who love the place, it’s always difficult to see them step out. It’s really good to have somebody that loves the University of Maine. For somebody like myself who’s been here a long time and loves UMaine, it’s really great when you have a president that loves UMaine.”

“Fare thee well and happy trails and keep her eyes cast to the sun[, President Hunter.]”

On April 22, the Best Buddies chapter at the University of Maine held their annual Best Buddies Friendship. This year, however, the event was named after Daniel Scott, a buddy that recently died.

The Daniel Scott Best Buddies Friendship Walk began in the Stewart Quad, where a community of over a hundred people gathered to play lawn games, mingle and share stories with one another. This year, the organization was able to bring Matt Maxey from Deafinitely Dope, a musical performer that aims to unite the hearing and Deaf community through his use of music and sign language. Maxey, who attended Gallaudet University on a presidential scholarship, hopes that through his work, he can break barriers to create an outlet where others who experience a struggle with identifying can find peace, unity and enjoyment, according to his website.

The event was free to attend, but $5 donations were recommended. The money goes toward sending the new executive board of the club to the annual Best Buddies Leadership Conference. The conference has been held for the past 29 years, where thousands are inspired to bring change to their communities. The UMaine chapter of Best Buddies hopes to raise $1,500 from the event. Local businesses also contributed food and prizes for the event. The prizes were raffled off, along with T-shirts that had the Best Buddies logo on the front and a photo of Daniel Scott on the back.

“The whole purpose of it [Friendship Walk] is to spread awareness to our community members are they should not be shut out or forgotten. We’re going to walk around the mall and then Matt from Deafinitely Dope is going to perform. A big part of today is to make sure that all of our allied communities are actually allies and to raise awareness that even if you don’t self-identify as having a disability, it does not mean that you should turn away from somebody that does, or vice versa, and to build connections throughout our community,” said Adya Plourde, president of the UMaine chapter of Best Buddies, said.

Among the many in attendance was Laura Edmondson, who manages several of the Best Buddies programs throughout Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. Edmondson drove to the event from Concord, New Hampshire to show her support.

“I have a special ed degree and I focus on Deafness as my field of study. I went to work at a Deaf school and found myself very drawn to the kids that had multiple disabilities and just really enjoyed working with that population. When I moved on from there, I went and worked at a K-2 school and worked with some kids that were nonverbal and used American Sign Language (ASL) as a way to communicate. From there, I knew that I wanted to continue to work with kids and students, but I did not necessarily want to be in a school full-time, so Best Buddies was the perfect place for me to be. I love my job,” Edmondson said.

“We’re here to break barriers and make connections,” said Amy Teets, who was in attendance with Maxey, said.

At the event, there was support from Pi Kappa Phi, whose philanthropy project is centered around Best Buddies. Tyler Gagne, a fourth-year finance and management major, was thrilled to be able to participate in the day’s events.

“My freshman year, I joined the fraternity and a couple of the brothers were also a part of it and showed it to me. I have entirely enjoyed my time with the organization. There are great people involved with this great cause. Every group outing that we’ve had has its own memorable thing. We go to hockey games, basketball games, dances, etc. Seeing the buddies dance and having a great time just warms my heart,” Gagne said.

“My little sister has special needs, so all throughout high school, I worked at the Special Olympics and really wanted to continue on campus,” Marybeth Colby, a first-year elementary education student said, “Best Buddies means acceptance and taking in everyone and not caring.”

“It’s my first time in Maine, being from Atlanta,” Maxey said,  “We want to talk about ways to make ASL more accessible to people all around, no matter if they’re deaf, hard of hearing, or hearing. There are different ways on how to interact with people in everyday life. People do not realize how much ASL is a part of life, even if it’s unintentional. It’s time to make it easier for people to realize that you can communicate with ASL, whether you’re through a window, underwater, or a distance away. I started [studying ASL] in 2006 during my first year of college. This is my first time working with Best Buddies, and I’m excited to be here. I’m very curious and want to learn more about the organization because I really like what I have seen so far. I’m excited to see what Maine is about and I’m enjoying my time here to soak everything up.”

“It’s a really great day, and we’re super excited that Dan [Scott] gave us a really good one to walk around for. We are super excited for you all to be here,” Plourde said.

Maxey took the stage just before the walk to share his involvement in the walk. He had an interpreter on stage, and he switched off between speaking and having his interpreter translate.

“I am Deaf. I grew up with speech therapy, and I was always in a mainstream hearing school, and I was always around hearing classmates. Even in honors classes, I was forced to socialize with hearing peers. I did not know anything about the Deaf culture or the Deaf community, I didn’t know that people even used sign language until I got to college.” Maxey said.

Maxey’s mission at the event was to show the alliance between various communities. His group, Deafinitely Dope, was created to have something in the mainstream media where the Deaf community is represented.

There were over a hundred community members in attendance. Best Buddies has a GoFundMe page set up and a Venmo account for donations. To get more information, visit gofundme.com/BBFW2018.

On April 22, the Best Buddies chapter at the University of Maine held their annual Best Buddies Friendship. This year, however, the event was named after Daniel Scott, a buddy that recently died.

The Daniel Scott Best Buddies Friendship Walk began in the Stewart Quad, where a community of over a hundred people gathered to play lawn games, mingle and share stories with one another. This year, the organization was able to bring Matt Maxey from Deafinitely Dope, a musical performer that aims to unite the hearing and Deaf community through his use of music and sign language. Maxey, who attended Gallaudet University on a presidential scholarship, hopes that through his work, he can break barriers to create an outlet where others who experience a struggle with identifying can find peace, unity and enjoyment, according to his website.

The event was free to attend, but $5 donations were recommended. The money goes toward sending the new executive board of the club to the annual Best Buddies Leadership Conference. The conference has been held for the past 29 years, where thousands are inspired to bring change to their communities. The UMaine chapter of Best Buddies hopes to raise $1,500 from the event. Local businesses also contributed food and prizes for the event. The prizes were raffled off, along with T-shirts that had the Best Buddies logo on the front and a photo of Daniel Scott on the back.

“The whole purpose of it [Friendship Walk] is to spread awareness to our community members are they should not be shut out or forgotten. We’re going to walk around the mall and then Matt from Deafinitely Dope is going to perform. A big part of today is to make sure that all of our allied communities are actually allies and to raise awareness that even if you don’t self-identify as having a disability, it does not mean that you should turn away from somebody that does, or vice versa, and to build connections throughout our community,” said Adya Plourde, president of the UMaine chapter of Best Buddies, said.

Among the many in attendance was Laura Edmondson, who manages several of the Best Buddies programs throughout Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. Edmondson drove to the event from Concord, New Hampshire to show her support.

“I have a special ed degree and I focus on Deafness as my field of study. I went to work at a Deaf school and found myself very drawn to the kids that had multiple disabilities and just really enjoyed working with that population. When I moved on from there, I went and worked at a K-2 school and worked with some kids that were nonverbal and used American Sign Language (ASL) as a way to communicate. From there, I knew that I wanted to continue to work with kids and students, but I did not necessarily want to be in a school full-time, so Best Buddies was the perfect place for me to be. I love my job,” Edmondson said.

“We’re here to break barriers and make connections,” said Amy Teets, who was in attendance with Maxey, said.

At the event, there was support from Pi Kappa Phi, whose philanthropy project is centered around Best Buddies. Tyler Gagne, a fourth-year finance and management major, was thrilled to be able to participate in the day’s events.

“My freshman year, I joined the fraternity and a couple of the brothers were also a part of it and showed it to me. I have entirely enjoyed my time with the organization. There are great people involved with this great cause. Every group outing that we’ve had has its own memorable thing. We go to hockey games, basketball games, dances, etc. Seeing the buddies dance and having a great time just warms my heart,” Gagne said.

“My little sister has special needs, so all throughout high school, I worked at the Special Olympics and really wanted to continue on campus,” Marybeth Colby, a first-year elementary education student said, “Best Buddies means acceptance and taking in everyone and not caring.”

“It’s my first time in Maine, being from Atlanta,” Maxey said,  “We want to talk about ways to make ASL more accessible to people all around, no matter if they’re deaf, hard of hearing, or hearing. There are different ways on how to interact with people in everyday life. People do not realize how much ASL is a part of life, even if it’s unintentional. It’s time to make it easier for people to realize that you can communicate with ASL, whether you’re through a window, underwater, or a distance away. I started [studying ASL] in 2006 during my first year of college. This is my first time working with Best Buddies, and I’m excited to be here. I’m very curious and want to learn more about the organization because I really like what I have seen so far. I’m excited to see what Maine is about and I’m enjoying my time here to soak everything up.”

“It’s a really great day, and we’re super excited that Dan [Scott] gave us a really good one to walk around for. We are super excited for you all to be here,” Plourde said.

Maxey took the stage just before the walk to share his involvement in the walk. He had an interpreter on stage, and he switched off between speaking and having his interpreter translate.

“I am Deaf. I grew up with speech therapy, and I was always in a mainstream hearing school, and I was always around hearing classmates. Even in honors classes, I was forced to socialize with hearing peers. I did not know anything about the Deaf culture or the Deaf community, I didn’t know that people even used sign language until I got to college.” Maxey said.

Maxey’s mission at the event was to show the alliance between various communities. His group, Deafinitely Dope, was created to have something in the mainstream media where the Deaf community is represented.

There were over a hundred community members in attendance. Best Buddies has a GoFundMe page set up and a Venmo account for donations. To get more information, visit gofundme.com/BBFW2018.

On Tuesday, April 10, the University of Maine hosted a press conference in the Buchanan Alumni House, where the new president was announced. Dr. Joan Ferrini-Mundy will be taking over for the current president, Susan Hunter, in June. Ferrini-Mundy currently works at the National Science Foundation, where she holds the position of chief operating officer. Ferrini’s entire career has been focused on education.

In a previous interview with The Maine Campus, Ferrini-Mundy expressed her enthusiasm for working with students. “Some areas of high priority for me definitely include the student experience. Keeping a focus on the teaching and learning is important,” she said. “This university is about building new knowledge and making sure that the infrastructure is sound and growing.”

Ferrini-Mundy hopes to follow in President Hunter’s footsteps. Previously, she told The Maine Campus, “I admire the accomplishments of President Hunter, both as I have learned and as I have had the chance to meet with her this week. Just such deep commitment to the state, to the university, and to the people of the university. I would aspire to continue that and build from what she has done.”

Ferrini-Mundy will be the second female president that the University of Maine has had the pleasure of working with.

On Thursday, March 22, the University of Maine lost a proud member of the Black Bear community. Daniel Scott was an active member of Best Buddies at UMaine.

Best Buddies is a student organization that is found on the UMaine campus as well as nationally. According to their website, their mission reads: “Best Buddies International is a nonprofit organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-on-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership developed for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).”

“I joined UMaine’s Best Buddies program my first year at UMaine back in 2014. Also, I have an older sister who did Best Buddies at Emerson College when she was an undergraduate student. She loved it, and after discovering it here on campus, it was something that I should try,” Adya Plourde, the UMaine Best Buddies Chapter President, said.

Scott was a peer buddy for the club, meaning that he was directly paired up with a student through the organization. The buddy and student spend the school year building a one-on-one friendship through monthly group meetings and additional meeting times outside of these group gatherings. “We ask the students to spend time with their peer buddies at least once a month in order to keep the friendships going strong. However, once a month ‘hangouts’ outside of our planned events turn into twice, bi-weekly or even weekly friendship dates,” Plourde added.

“On behalf of Best Buddies UMaine, I think we’d all want Dan to be remembered as the bright light of our chapter. Dan’s energy, commitment, and love for Best Buddies was something unique and lovely. He brought sass, laughter, love and endless hugs every time he walked into our events. If there was empty space, Dan would find some way to keep the party going. He never forgot birthdays, Valentine’s flowers or Halloween costumes. Not only was he the life of the party, but he did his best to encourage others to enjoy life with him. In addition, Daniel was our biggest mascot, cheerleader and Best Buddies dance team member. He absolutely loved any occasion to celebrate UMaine and our events will not be the same without him. His bright blue wig, Best Buddies cutout and face paint will always be kept in our hearts,” Plourde said.

Each year, Best Buddies holds their Friendship Walk, an event that is open to the community. This year, the event will be called, “The Daniel Scott Best Buddies Friendship Walk,” in memory of Scott. The goal of the walk is to spread awareness to the community that people with IDDs deserve friendship, love, and equal rights and opportunities. This year, UMaine will have guest speaker Matthew Maxey, founder of Deafinitely Dope and an American Sign Language interpreter, at the event. The event is free, but it is recommended that those who attend donate $5 toward sending members of the organization to the mandatory Best Buddies Leadership Conference that happens in July.

“The legacy of Daniel Scott is something to be cherished. Although he left our world in a short amount of time, Daniel accomplished so many incredible things. He usually occupied his time doing something fun and participated in all kinds of events. He made sure to spread our Best Buddies love wherever he went. The legacy of Daniel Scott is his unapologetic smile, his upbeat tone and his magnificent desire to do what he loved. Daniel was proud of himself, and he loved himself, and his immense love allowed others to see their own inner beauty,” Plourde said

On Sunday, March 24, the March For Our Lives was held at the University of Maine for the town of Orono. Hundreds gathered to show their support to end gun violence in the United States. This particular march was just one of nearly 800 nationwide.

“I am marching today because you see all the tragedy happening, and I think that it is sad and I want to do something to help and try to do anything I can to just make a little bit of a difference,” Daniele Gold, president of the Maine Peace Action Committee, said. “I don’t want to see it [gun violence] happen in my community.  No one expected to see it in theirs, so it is scary to know that it can happen any time, anywhere. I would really like to see something change.”

The event was organized by the Maine Peace Action Committee (MPAC), which meets regularly on campus. “We want to create peace among everyone and change the way injustices are faced and make sure that when we do face those injustices, we do so in a healthy way and bring people together on campus and within the community to make change in all sorts of things,” Gold said.

The event brought in members of the community from as young as elementary school students to seniors. It began around 10 a.m., with members of the Orono community toting signs in solidarity that something within our culture must change, and schools need to become a safe environment for students again.

Included in the attendance was co-chair of the Feminist Collective, Taylor Cray. “I am marching today because I am concerned about safety,” Cray said.

“We should not have to be in fear when our children are stepping into a place where growth, opportunity and learning should be happening,” Gold said. “I stand here today because we will not accept another life to be taken away by a shooter. We stand here today in memory of those lives that have been taken. We are here today to try to change the way that guns are controlled in our community, in our state and in our country. We are marching today for all of our lives.”

The increase that the U.S. has seen in gun violence through recent years has inspired many UMaine students to take a stand and become activists. Erin O’Malley, a first-year English student recently joined MPAC. “The Parkland shooting in particular really kind of inspired me to do something about an issue that I have passionate about for a while. I think them speaking out just seemed different than the other shootings, and I was really, really mad about it and just wanted to do something to bring awareness. The March For Our Lives being a national thing is just a good way to show solidarity and bring activism to the community.”

“I am a new member of MPAC and I joined at the perfect time. It’s just such an important issue [gun violence] to me to see the tragedy that’s been happening. I can’t fathom the pain that so many families have to go through on such a very regular basis because of something that could have been prevented. That speaks to me, especially as a student,” Loren Hubbard, a second-year new media student at UMaine, said.

Following Golds introduction to the event, the floor was open for speakers to stand and express their concerns. The first to speak was McKenna Baker, a senior at Hermon High School.

“I have a younger sister, she is 15 years old,” Baker said. “We didn’t get along when we were younger, but we do now. She will be able to drive soon and get a job, and I couldn’t be more excited for this next chapter of her life that she is about to enter, which is why I’m so afraid that she might not get there. Some kid could walk into our school with a gun tomorrow and take my sister’s life. She could miss driving for the first time by herself, spending time with friends, prom, graduation and so much more. The very thing that I am so afraid of has happened to so many others. All the while, America has stood by, silent, thinking that the change doesn’t start with us. But it does, and the change starts now.”

Included in the attendance of the event were those with opposing views. While their signs encouraged the message that, “guns don’t kill people, gun-free zones do,” they were in agreement that children’s lives should not be taken away. Both sides of the debate were civil with one another and following the march, those in opposition dissolved into side conversations with the marchers.

Next to speak was Emma Hargreaves, a junior at Old Town High School. “I am afraid, I am angry, I feel helpless and I feel alone. I feel like the rest of the world is spinning as normal, but for those of us that climb school steps each weekday, it is off axis. I am a lucky one. I can type this message with the rage it must be written in. The unlucky ones are dead. They died afraid and angry and helpless and alone. They died from a bullet in a place where bullets should not go. They died and they shouldn’t have. They were kids that should have lived long enough to become parents. My parents have different reasons for similar feelings.”

The next to speak was Sam Portera, a member of the Maine’s People’s Alliance. He left the crowd with a quote from Harriet Tubman that resulted in a moment of applause and uproar, “If you hear the dogs, keep going. If you see the torches in the woods, keep going. If there’s shouting after you, keep going. Don’t ever stop. Keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going.”

“We have seen too many yearbook photos beside condolence messages. I am sick of living in a before that I know will soon become an after. Sadly, it is a matter of when, not if. I am sick of worrying that the body count will include my own.” said Hargreaves.

“I was 12 years old when a man shot into a movie theater during a showing of Batman. I went and saw the movie a month later and was afraid,” Baker said. “Sandy Hook happened when I was 13. My friends and I cried for them, I thought about my sister. When I was 15, a hate-filled man killed nine people at his college in Oregon. I wondered if my future was as exciting as I thought it would be. I was 16 when a man killed 49 people in a nightclub. I decided that staying in was the way to go. I was 17 when a man shot and killed 59 people at a concert. I figured that listening to that music on my phone wasn’t that different anyways. I am 18 and a man killed 17 people in a high school in Florida. I decided that this was not the life I wanted for my children. I decided that never again will I decide that this is normal.”

As the march around the University Mall began, 11-year-old Owen Beane took the steps and began speaking. “I go to school every day and I am tired of hearing about another shooting. I do not want to live every day in fear, we need more security and I definitely have noticed an increase in school lockdowns and this cannot be acceptable. We need to do something anything we can to not have people in danger every day in a place where we go to learn and have fun.”

Beane was hesitant to attend the event at first. “His resistance to attending the event wasn’t in the subject matter,” his dad, Greg said, “it was purely because he is 11 years old and it’s early and he had the ‘I would rather stay home and play with my legos’ mindset. I talked to him and gave him a pep talk on how to stand up and be a part of this and that hopefully impressed him a little bit.”

Owen Beane then walked down the steps of Fogler Library, megaphone in hand and led the march with chants. As the groups dispersed, the message was clear: in order for change, people must come together, despite what politics are held, and share ideas on how to change the culture that has become all-too-normal in the U.S.

After the public phase of the presidential search, Dr. Nancy Targett withdrew her application, narrowing the candidates down to the final three. On Sunday, March 18, and Monday, March 19, the Board of Trustees met and one of their topics of discussion was to review the Chancellor’s briefs on each candidate. From there, the board authorized the chancellor to conclude his decision and begin talking negotiations and contracts with the candidate that he sees best fit for the position. The decision should be made within the next two to three weeks, according to Tracy Bigney, a special assistant for executive employment at the University of Maine.

On Saturday, March 4, the March Against Gun Violence was held at the University of Maine. Marchers and counter-protesters gathered at the Emera Astronomy Center bearing signs that included phrases such as, “Protect Our Children, Arm and Train Teachers,” as well as a “NO GUNS” sign held by a small child. The event was organized by Quinn Stewart.

Tensions arose before the march began as heated debates took place between the two opposing parties. “We are here to protest gun violence. The NRA is here to stay,” Matt Miller, a member of UMaine College Republicans, said.

“Arming teachers is not the answer,” Emma Newcomb, a student at the march, said. “My mom works at a school where there is gang violence. So that raises the question as to how arming teachers would actually solve this problem.”

The march spanned from the Emera Astronomy Center to the Raymond H. Fogler Library. Once the march ended at the library, Diane Russell, a gubernatorial candidate, gave a speech to those in attendance.

“I am here today because I want to stand up and support all of you that are marching here to save the lives of the next generation. I grew up a couple hours away from here and I grew up in a gun culture. By the age of 12, I had a doe permit, and I went hunting with my dad and his friends. One thing that my dad taught me is that you do not go hunting with trigger-happy people. You do not go into the woods with people that might accidentally pull the trigger or those that do not know the safety mechanisms of their weapon,” Russell said.

Russell also talked about the shootings that have happened in the past. “We are seeing a significant amount of violence in the media right now. Columbine was my generation, and then there was Sandy Hook,” she said. “We started seeing time after time after time that people were walking in and killing people en masse. And it feels like it belongs to someone else, Las Vegas was all the way across the country. But Parkland was different. Something shifted because the victims refused to be victims. They refused to stand down in a moment where they should have been grieving by all accounts. Instead, they chose to stand up because they have had enough.”

Following this, Russell went on to tell the crowd about how she has been affected by gun violence. She lost several family members to gun violence after they were attacked on their property by a neighbor that they had thought was being friendly. Her mother’s cousin was the only survivor of the attack, as she hid out in the woods until sunrise so that her cell phone’s lit screen would not give away her position.

“This woman is the bravest woman that I’ve ever met,” Russell said. “She couldn’t call until sunrise. Imagine being the woman hiding in the woods and being unable to save your family and able to make one decision: that you are going to survive the night to make sure that you could show up to the courtroom and stare him in the eye and tell everyone what he did to your family with the sheriff who rescued you.”

The day that this verdict was made, the same sheriff that rescued her mother’s cousin got a call that he had to travel a couple of towns over because another mass shooting had occured. “The day that we received our justice, eight other families’ lives fell apart,” Russell said.

After this, Representative Ryan Tipping of the Maine House of Representatives spoke to the crowd. “We have all been going through a thought process since the Parkland shooting about how we can make schools safer. I know that a lot have wondered about how we can get to this place. There have been serious conversations about this in Augusta and D.C. What this looks like in Augusta is a bill we have moving forward regarding stocks, magazine sizes, et cetera. One bill that we are working on is regarding Red Flags.”

Lastly, Quinn Stewart talked for a bit. “The problem of gun violence has spread across our entire nation. The problem did not hit me close enough until the Parkland shooting, where one of my closest friends was among one of the survivors of that shooting. Then it became clear that enough is enough, there is something that we have to do. Whether you’re in favor of gun control or opposed to gun control, you have to admit one thing: that regardless of your position on this debate, we can do something. For those of you holding up signs in opposition today, I say one thing: that you come together with us, that we march together, that we come up with ideas together to actually propose adequate solutions to such a massive problem.”

The event ended with a conversation among everyone in attendance.

On Feb. 25, 2018, the University of Maine lost a beloved member of the Black Bear community. Chandler Langlois was a member of Delta Tau Delta, Gamma Nu chapter, a fraternity on campus, and had recently been diagnosed with NUT Midline Carcinoma, a disease that affects about 20-30 people per year in the United States.

Another member of the fraternity organized a benefit dinner for Langlois on Feb. 23. Eric LeVasseur met Langlois in the spring of 2017, just a semester after Langlois officially joined the fraternity. “We weren’t that close, but I was very surprised to hear about his illness. From what I’ve heard, it only affects 20 people a year in the United States.”

“I believe Chandler’s greatest accomplishment during his college career would be his acceptance and participation in his fraternity Delta Tau Delta. Even so, there are many accomplishments I believe my brother has, but his fraternity was very good in developing his character and overall making him a better person,” Chandler’s brother, Connor Langlois, said.

“Our fraternity had to plan an event in the Memorial Union through the University, so we decided to make it a philanthropy event for money and awareness,” LaVasseur said.

The event was hosted as a Dinner and Trivia Night, with catering done by Chick-Fil-A. The proceeds, which were almost triple what was anticipated, are going toward a scholarship fund in Langlois’ name.

“We are hoping to put this scholarship into effect by the fall of 2018. It will be given to students that are currently battling cancer, have survived cancer, or have a family member battling cancer,” LaVasseur said.

Fraternities and sororities all around campus contributed their support and donations at the event. “Something that was special to us was after the event, we were at the house [Delta], and we got a knock on the door from brothers from Theta Chi. They donated $150 cash to us,” Aidan LeClair, a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity, said.

“Many of the brothers have been very caring and comforting to our family throughout the entire time Chandler was ill. They visited Chandler in the hospital multiple times and even made quilts for him as he lay in bed all day. In all honesty, everybody’s kindness and warmth around this has boosted my faith in people. It is so wonderful to have others come in to visit, talk to you, and comfort you,” Connor Langlois said.

“The one word that comes to mind when I reflect on the benefit was how beautiful it was,” LeClair said. “Going into it, we were not expecting the turnout that we received, and our main concern was having enough food. Throughout the night, more and more people piled in and the donations were beyond anything that we expected.”

LeClair met Langlois two semesters ago in a casual event through the fraternity. “I will most definitely miss our conversations. He could talk to me about anything, and I could talk to him about anything as well, and we would just spitball off of each other. I learned a lot from him. He had a lot of goals ahead of him and although he was younger than me, he was more adult than I am and he was more prepared for the world.”

“My favorite moments I’ve had with Chandler are when we played golf and worked at our ice cream shop together,” Connor Langlois said. “Playing golf together made us bond very closely as we could both enjoy an activity in the hot summer day. I will never forget these times we had together. He taught me how to be a better person. With his sheer kindness towards others, I have picked up on valuable lessons.”

“If there were any way that Chandler could hear this, I want him to know that we miss him and we will never stop thinking about him,” LeClair added.

The fundraiser set up for a scholarship in Chandler’s name is still online and accepting donations.

“It warms my heart to see others care for another person in hard times, especially his brothers of Delta Tau Delta and friends,” Connor Langlois added.

The fundraisers can be found at https://www.gofundme.com/ChandlerLangloisScholarshipFund as well as https://facebook.com/chandlerlangloisscholarshipfund.