University of Mississippi - Ole Miss Yearbook (Oxford, MS)

Page 33 text:

MOURNERS WALKED IN SILENCE from ParisYates Chapel toward the still-smouldering i fraternity house the night of the : fire. Some cried, others stared in disbelief. But they all stood together. The healing had begun. SiidkntLifk I 29

Page 32 text:

wm- m tT WAS A DAY FRC fui firefigFiter Kenny Tidwell.Aftet -nine draining hours, three were deacfSncTaitouse lay destroyed. wrilk ' ii by SALIMEH SHAMALY , he first week of fall classes had arrived, and students at Ole Miss were settling into the rhythm of college life. There were poster and T-shirt sales, mechanical bulls and live bands. Welcome Week T in full swing. Rumble in the Grove was set. Rockers Sister Hazel and Ingram Hill were scheduled to give an upbeat start to the new semester. But the concert never happened. Two 9 1 1 phone calls changed that August Friday at 4:30 a.m. - the three-story Alpha Tau Omega fraternity house was ablaze. Smoke engulfed the pre-dawn sky. Ri.sing flames scared the early morning clew. ATO members scrambled to account for each brother. The hou.se mother and more than 20 members all escaped unharmed. But in those fleeting moments of relief, miracles gave way to tragedies. Three brothers did not survive. Sophomore political science major Howard Hillhouse Stone, 19, of Martinsville, Va.; sophomore accountancy major William Moore Townsend, 19, of Clarksdale; and sophomore accountancy major Jordan Lowell Williams, 20, p[ Atlanta died within the fire-engulfed ATO Time stood still on our campus as we, confronted the reality o the trance y and bcg n to absorb the pain m our hearts and minds. -Robert C Kha at The Ole Miss commimity awoke to uncertainty. Students gathered near the devastating scene, embracing siu ' vivors and honoring the lost. All were united. Night fell on the smoky campus, but the crowds still gathered. Not for a rock concert, but in unspoken .solidarity hundreds made their way past the ATO house. Days later a campus still in shock came together again to begin healing over 3,000 made the solemn walk past the l)urned house to gather and morn the loss of the many sludenls who had lost their lives during ihe year. For months afterwards, all thai remained behind a green burla|) fence and laltered yellow (ape was the house ' s blackened Iramc and charred-wood smell. But despite all the tragedy, the student body began to (ind strength from ils pain.

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After a time of tragedy, Sister Hazel and Ingram Hill performed a benefit CONCERT IN honor OF THE AlPHA TaU OmEGA MEN THAT LOST THEIR LIVES AuGUST 27 wnlU ' ii hv MARY MARGARET MILLER illi any tragedy, there is a time to mourn and a nie to dc(p3e. The dancing came on Nov. 1 vvhen the Ole Miss community convened at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts for a long- delayed rock show. As a Aow of support of the men of Alpha ' • Qpega fraternity, national acts Ingram ind Sis ter Hazel performed a benefit concert - donating all proceeds to the memorial funds honoring Howard Stone, Will Townscnd and Jordan Williams. Around 600 bought S25 tickets for an evening of memorable music and Iriendship. I am really good friends with a bunch of ATOs, and I am here supporting (them), said Sally Summerson, a freshman journalism major. It was really awesome of Sister Hazel to do this for them. Sister Hazel and Ingram Hill were scheduled to perform at Rumble in the Grove the Friday evening of the fire. Bui the day ' s circumstances dictated otherwise. Making the first move. Sister Hazel and Ingram Hill contacted the student programming board and asked to put on the benefit concert. Working with the sororities and fraternities of Ole Miss, the SPB gave both students and locals a way to financially assist the ATOs, as well as a way to celebrate the lives of the three brave men lost in the August 27 fire. We appreciate the bands doing the concert for us, .said Cole McCarty, a senior ATO from Tupelo. A lot of people wanted to know what they could do to help. It gave students an opportunity to donate to the chapter and come out, enjoy themselves and have a good time with us. Fraternity members of ATO and their dates received seating in the orchestra pit of the Ford Center. Sister Hazel ' s lead vocalist Drew Copeland opened the show with numbers from his new solo album, No Regrets. The theater filled as regional favorite Ingram Hill took the stage. The high-energy show was filled with the bands break-oul hits, Will I Ever Make It Home and Slippin ' Out, from iheir album June ' s Picture Show. We think it is great that we were ai le to be a part of everything, said JusUn Moore, lead vocalist and guitarist for Ingram Hill. The entire tragedy was terrible, but I am glad that the school and everybody likes us enough that they would want us to come back and play the benefit. We were very honored by that. After a short intermission in which band members from Ingram Hill signed autographs and greeted the fans, main act Sister Hazel filled the room with good vibes and funky rilTs. The already energetic crowd was not let For us to come back and contribute to this cause is very special. We wouldn ' t nave.it anvpther way, said T)rew Copeland, vocalist for Sister Hazel. down by the dynamite performance. The band played an array of songs from their five albums, including fan favorites All for You, All About the Love, Champagne High and Change Your Mind. We were actually pulling into town the morning the accident happened, said Drew Copeland of Sister Hazel. For us to come back and contribute to (his cause is very special. We wouldn ' t have it any other way. And a special ■ night it was for everyone present. Through the grief and confusion, the men of Alpha Tau Omega have taught tiie Ole Miss community the lesson of strength in unity. As ATOs, friends and patrons gathered in the theater of the Ford Center, the |5resence of the young men lost was apparent in the smiles worn and the hugs given. Although the trials of the fall semester will never be forgotten, tiie outjjoiM of support, ranging from neighboring fraternities to national rock bands, have helped an amazing group of men and tiic entire 0 c Miss community remember how to rejoice in the jjlessing ol friendship. 30 I Tki. Oi t Mis