Ever Grateful, Ever True

Tuesday started off just like any other day.  I forced myself out of my warm covers, took a shower and went to my senior design team meeting.  I eventually went back to my apartment to eat lunch and do some homework.  After a couple hours of being unproductive, I glanced at the clock which read just after noon.  I debated going to campus early to get some work done but ultimately decided to take a quick nap before my next class which was in the electrical engineering building.

Five minutes later, my phone and computer started making noises.  My friend, Andy, was telling me about his most recent China escapades while some of my friends at Purdue were messaging about a shooting on campus.

... shooting on campus??  I was immediately jolted into a panic.  This is the kind of thing that happens on the news in some far off place, not on my college campus.  I called Andy on Google hangouts to have a friendly face to talk with during this difficult time.  I then immediately locked the door, shut the blinds and pulled up my email, the local police scanner, and opened the Purdue Twitter, Facebook and Reddit pages to scan for updates.

Over the next hour, I nervously waited for more information to come in.  Texts and calls were going back and forth between friends, checking to make sure everyone was safe.  The majority of my ME friends were on lock-down in the ME building, just 20 steps from EE.  Finally, around 1:30, a press conference announced that lock-down was lifted and campus could return to "normal operations".  No official statement could be made yet regarding the events that had happened, all we knew is that two students were involved in the incident.  One shooter, who had been quickly apprehended by the police, and his victim, a TA for the ECE 362 course.  A candlelight vigil was set for 8pm at the Engineering Fountain.

My roommates arrived back at our apartment shortly after that.  We all had different survival stories from the day, but really all we could say was "glad you're safe."  Later that evening, we went to the Co-rec to blow off some steam.  Looking at the faces of the students there, it was obvious they were all stressed from the day's ordeal.  When 6pm hit, everything suddenly stopped.  With bated breath, we paid close attention to the second press conference as the names of the two students were announced.  The shooter, an ECE student named Cody Cousins, didn't look familiar.  On the other hand, the victim, did: Andrew Boldt was his name.

Tuesday evening - over 2,000 students, faculty and staff gathered in -2° weather to support each other

Our candles that we left on the engineering fountain

This past week was the most difficult time of my college career.  Even though I didn't know either Cody or Andrew, this event hit way too close to home.  One of my friends had met Cody before and I had  many friends who knew Andrew.  Not to mention the whole thing happened 3 blocks from my apartment in a place that I've called home over the past few years.  My heart goes out to all those who have been affected by the tragedy this past week.

I had always known that the Boilermaker family was a strong community, but this week we became even more unified.  Andrew's death has brought us all closer together as we lean on each other for support.   Images of a Purdue P superimposed on a black ribbon have been circulating social media networks.  Texts, phone calls, Skype, Facebook messages and emails from friends and family all across campus, the country and the world were sent to West Lafayette, all expressing concern and hope for better days.  It is so powerful to know that people are on your side, wishing you all the best in such a difficult time.  I just came back from a weekend at Andy's home where we enjoyed peace, quiet (I slept 12 hours on Friday, more than I've had all week), home-cooked meals and a chance to escape from campus.  Now I'm feeling much stronger than before, ready for the next phase of the healing process.

This sign appeared Wednesday on I-65

Thursday, first day back to class

 After classes on Friday

As in the lyrics to "Hail Purdue," we are "ever grateful, ever true" to the supportive and loyal Purdue Boilermaker family.  Rest in peace, Andrew Boldt.


Hearfelt letter from Professor David Meyer, Andrew's supervising professor.

Homily from Father Nathan Reesman, Andrew's home parish. 

It's Been a While...

It has been over 6 months since I returned from my study abroad experience in China.  That's so hard to believe, it really does feel like just yesterday we were roaming the streets of Shanghai.  During these past 6 months, I completed my second Chevron internship, accepted a full-time job, survived the toughest semester of my college career and now have begun my last undergraduate semester at Purdue.

Where does the time go?  It's hard to stop and remember where we've been.  One of my closest friends has just begun his adventure in Shanghai as part of the same Engineering Term Abroad program I participated in last spring.  Never one to take many photos, he asked me about my photo-taking technique and then how to pick which photos to share on Facebook.  I looked through the photos I posted from my adventures last spring... there were only 1,929.  However, I took way more than that  - 12,433 to be exact.

Last spring, I tried to post only the photos that I thought people would find the most interesting, giving them a good overview of our experiences.  In reality, there are so many different stories that can be told about my 2013 China adventure.  It is very difficult to answer the questions, "So what was China really like?" or "How did your time abroad impact you?"  I spoke in the sophomore ME seminar class last fall and spent 20 minutes just on the impact of my time in China.  Honestly though, I could easily go on for hours about all of our observations and experiences.

The real answer is that it's hard to explain the true, powerful impact of a semester abroad.  Just like it's difficult to select the photos or the stories you want to share.  While in China, I loved the idea of writing a blog to show people what I was doing every day.  However, it was tough to sit down and reflect on things when I actually just wanted to keep exploring and seeing even more.  Now that I've been back, I've seen how my perspectives have grown, my communication and leadership skills are stronger, and how I'm even more open to new adventures than ever before.

A picture from our most recent China reunion:

First week of the new semester!  

In the next set of blog entries, I'm going to try to summarize more of my experiences from this past year.  2013 was a record year in so many ways... and 2014 is definitely shaping up to be full of new, fantastic experiences.  This semester I'm taking two engineering classes (one traditional and senior design) along with bowling, etiquette, personal finance and Spanish.  I'm also making time to exercise, learn to cook and make lots of fun memories as a Purdue senior.  More soon!