AP News, June 16th, 2007
Austin Cloyd's dedication to helping the people of Appalachia has poured into others. Mary Read's scholarship fund will help other students fulfill her dream of graduating from college. And even in death, Lauren McCain is still spreading the word of God.
In ways as unique as the children who died too young, parents of some of the 27 students killed in the April 16 shootings at Virginia Tech are ensuring that hopes and dreams live on.
"The sad part of this is we're talking about the legacy of a person who wasn't quite 19 years old," says Austin's father, Bryan Cloyd. "For these students, many of whom were freshmen, we'll never really know.
"It's up to us to write their legacy."
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On Feb. 22, less than two months before she died, Lauren McCain recorded an 8-minute video for Campus Crusade for Christ, speaking of her commitment to Christ, her belief in heaven.
And then, in one haunting moment, she spoke of her own mortality:
"I was just crying out to God. I was like, 'Oh man, you've got to give me something. I know you. I know you live. And I know you live in me, but right now, I feel very dead."
"I asked to see His face, you know, because God says, 'Whoever sees my face, he's going to die.' And in a way we die to self, but as human beings, we're not going to see His face until we're in heaven. But I was like, 'Oh man, you know, just let me die then. Let me see your face.' And He showed me."
Lauren dedicated her life to spreading the word of God, says her pastor, Leonard Riley of Restoration Church-Phoebus Baptist in Hampton, Va. Now, her parents believe the video is doing the same.
"We knew that the Lord seemed to be working through all this," Riley says. "She wanted the whole world to know about Christ."
The video is drawing responses from across the nation, says Campus Crusade spokesman Tony Arnold. Some say it has made them re-evaluate their own lives.
"Tragedies like what happened at VT, even for those who are remote from them, it causes the average person to stop and consider their own mortality in terms of both what they are living for and what they want their lives to count for," Arnold says.
"From her first words that were remembered at Virginia Tech, to the last words that are recorded, she was talking about her faith and her relationship with God through Jesus, and I think that touches people," Arnold says.
"It wasn't just the way she died, it was the way she lived _ and that's the legacy."
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Long before she was a freshman at Virginia Tech, Mary Read was the consummate band kid.
The ever-grinning brunette played clarinet in the Marching Atoms at Annandale High School, twirled flags and rifles with the winter indoor color guard and, during her senior year, was president of the band.
When Peter and Cathy Read created a college scholarship fund in their daughter's name, there was no doubt where it would focus.
"It is hard to explain if you have never been in band, but the closeness and friendships that you develop through that shared experience are really special," says Cathy Read. "It never occurred to us to do the scholarship anywhere else but the band."
In less than two months, the community raised more than $27,000.
"The only thing I can say is that this is a direct reflection of the kind of person that Mary was _ and still is _ to many of us," says band director Jack Elgin.
Under the family's guidelines, band members nominated graduating seniors they considered caring, compassionate and kind, as Mary was. A group of band boosters judged the essays and chose the winner.
The writer of the winning essay, a freshman who'd never met Mary, nominated 18-year-old Billy Gibson for the $1,000 award.
Billy and Mary had dated in high school and been friends for years, passing many an afternoon playing foosball, Crazy Eights and Sudoku, a game that Mary always won.
"Even if she would lose, she would always be happy," Billy recalls. "She just liked to laugh."
After Mary died, Billy wasn't sure he could follow through on his plan to go to Virginia Tech.
But he was impressed by how the school handled the tragedy and ultimately decided to enroll this fall, possibly majoring in construction engineering.
"He'll have other loves and things, but she will always be a part of him," says his mother, Janice. "This is a gift from Mary. I know she's smiling."
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Austin Cloyd seemed destined for a life of philanthropy.
As a child, she traveled to Mexico, where a group of obstetrics nurses from Texas were helping to care for pregnant women. Austin played with the patients' children so the mothers could focus on their own well-being.
She later talked about working for the United Nations. But it was volunteer work with the faith-based Appalachia Service Project _ which provides housing services to low-income families in central Appalachia _ that really inspired her.
"That was the organization that probably, more than anything, taught our daughter Austin about the concepts of social justice, economic justice and service and really affected her world view and her choice of studying international studies," her father says.
For four summers, Austin helped rebuild roofs for families in need. The cheerful redhead was particularly moved by the personal connections she formed with the families.
"They don't work on these projects the way a hired crew would work on a project," Bryan Cloyd says. "Part of it is meeting the people, and getting to accept them for who they are, where they are, and realizing that even though they are living in really a different culture ... they still have a lot of the same hopes and dreams that other people have."
To celebrate her life, the Cloyd family encouraged memorial gifts to the project. So far, more than $70,000 has been donated. Cloyd and wife Renee also hope to recruit 50 Virginia Tech students this fall to spend a weekend volunteering.
"I think a lot of our students are going to say 'What can I do differently, or maybe do a little bit better to try to fulfill some of the dreams that these 32 people won't be able to fulfill themselves now?'" Cloyd says.
Austin's favorite quote was: "No one can do everything, but everyone can do something."
Her father believes she would have wanted fellow students to continue helping others.
"We've got 26,000 students on this campus and all of them have tremendous potential," Cloyd says. "And if each one of them would do 1 percent more, then that's a whole lot more than 32 people by themselves could do.
"I guess that's what we're latching on to," he says. "That hope."
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On the Net:
Appalachia Service Project: http://www.asphome.org/
Lauren's Campus Crusade video: http://www.starshellmedia.com/lm_video.htm
Campus Crusade for Christ: http://www.ccci.org/
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Associated Press writer Vicki Smith in Morgantown, W.Va., contributed to this report.
