Don’t forget personal safety while honoring legacy of lost

During the 2010-11 school year, which was my freshman year at FGCU, I watched an unsettling trend unfold that many current students will certainly be able to recollect.

Sadly, seven students lost their lives in addition to two faculty members and two staff members.

The notifications of their passing seemed to come far too frequently and as the death toll increased, the sense of tragedy built.

Let's take a moment to remember our fallen friends and mentors from the past school year, as confirmed by university spokeswoman Susan Evans:

Jeff Jinian, Kelly McCarthy, Morgan Crofton, Fara Ansalem, Karen Eastwood, Tim McCarthy, Marcus Eriksson, Carisa Herald, Andrew Monroe, Betsy Torres, and most recently, Joel Johnson.

As not only a university but also a community, it is never comfortable to lose one of our members, whether they are a student with a bright future or an esteemed employee of the university. The loss ripples through our community and we cannot forget the legacy each individual left.

The least we can do in remembrance of our friends is to prevent any more unfair losses. We must remember that despite what our youthful recklessness might suggest, life is fragile and it can be taken away at any time.

For both incoming students and those of us who attended FGCU in the past year, I implore you to be careful. It can be easy to get caught up in a moment where your safety is only a passing thought, but take that passing thought and turn it into an active one.

Think about the potential consequences of your actions and get out at the whiff of danger. Good decision making will help us keep unfortunate loss of life to a minimum.