22nd Annual Bonfire Remembrance
Gathering on the grassy berm surrounding the Bonfire Memorial’s glowing Spirit Ring, a crowd of thousands converged on the Texas A&M University campus early Thursday to honor the lives of the 12 Aggies who died during the Nov. 18, 1999 Bonfire collapse.
The Bonfire Memorial’s 12 portals – each featuring the likeness of the Aggie it honors – were illuminated in golden light as the crowd gathered in the early-morning darkness. The Remembrance Ceremony began at 2:42 a.m., the time when the tragedy was reported to emergency crews 22 years ago.
Students, former students and members of the Bryan-College Station community stood in silence during the reading of “The Last Corps Trip.” They gave a response of “here” after the names of each late Aggie was called: Miranda Denise Adams ’02, Christopher D. Breen ’96, Michael Stephen Ebanks ’03, Jeremy Richard Frampton ’99, Jamie Lynn Hand ’03, Christopher Lee Heard ’03, Timothy Doran Kerlee, Jr. ’03, Lucas John Kimmel ’03, Bryan A. McClain ’02, Chad A. Powell ’03, Jerry Don Self ’01, Nathan Scott West ’02.
