Mark Egan
News Reporter
and Naz Jafferi
Staff Writer
Candles were lit and prayers were said Monday to remember the 25 students, staff, faculty and retirees of the University of Houston who died during the past academic year.
The interfaith memorial service to remember the deceased members of the UH community was held in the A.D. Bruce Religion Center.
Family members of the deceased and members of the UH community were invited to attend the service, which included silent prayer and meditation, poetry reading and candle lighting. Everyone was invited to light a candle in remembrance of one of the deceased and give a brief eulogy. Ron Sellers, campus minister at UH, lit a candle if no one was available.
"Candles are used in various faiths," said Craig Butler, member of the Baptist Student Ministry. "Death is something we all share."
Most attendants said they enjoyed the hour-long service.
"I liked being in the chapel ... for the memorial of loved ones," said Norma Wendlandt.
Her husband, Wesley Wendlandt, a professor of chemistry at UH, died June 30, 1997.
Wendlandt said she found the beauty and serenity of the chapel uplifting. Her favorite part of the service was the candle lighting.
Mark Macintyre, a post-baccalaureate student at UH, said he liked the simplicity of the service.
"The service was very nice, not too long, and it got the job done," he said. Macintyre attended the service to pay respect to Newell Blakely, former dean of the UH Law School, and K. Byron McCoy, former director of the UH Law Center Trial Advocacy Institute.
About 30 people attended the service, and several guests expressed disappointment in the low turnout.
"I'm surprised not more people showed up," Macintyre said.
Wendlandt was also disappointed by the low turnout. "I'm sorry that there were not more people to chit-chat with," she said.
Most years, the memorial service has an attendance of about 50 people, said the Rev. Hugh Sanborn, director of campus ministries at UH.
The Religion Center has hosted a memorial service every year since 1989. It was Sanborn's idea to have a campuswide memorial at UH.
"I had a memorial for a professor, and it dawned on me that we should do it for the whole campus," he said.
The Religion Center compiles a list of all the deceased by contacting each department at UH. The departments are also asked to provide the names and addresses of surviving family members, said Martha Brooke, secretary at the Religion Center.
Sanborn added that family members often thank the religion center for hosting the service.
"Campus ministers feel that that we're doing (the service) on behalf of UH," he said.
The following is a list of students, faculty, staff and retirees who died between May 1997 and April 1998. Names of students are italicized.
Judy Juanita Barr; Robert K. Berger; Newell H. Blakely; Todd Borland Colvin; Bill Cook; Nicola S. Davies; Patricia K. Davis; Amol Desai; Mikhail Goldshtik; Marcus Granderson; Hilary Grivich; Eric Hatter; James Joplin; K. Byron McCoy; Calvin McDougle; Irvin Bennett Miller; Cecil J. Pickett; Dorthea Roby; Henrietta Seale; Devi Jean Spencer; Brett Storm; Karen Susman; B.A. Turner; Wesley W. Wendlandt; Albert Zlatkis.
- Information courtesy of the A.D. Bruce Religion Center