Michigan State community processes grief one year after mass shooting
EAST LANSING, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - Michigan State canceled classes for students on Tuesday and set up activities and spaces for the community to come together.
"Today has been really hard," said Emily Hoyumpa, a senior at MSU. "I think regardless of what you're feeling that can be acknowledged not only just here on campus but simply being a Spartan. Just knowing what happened. You never think it's going to happen to you. You see it on the news and get notifications on your phone, but then it happens to you, and then you're living in that reality. There's a before, and then there's an after, and we're living in the after."
Hoyumpa says that it's tough working to process the emotions that come up one year later.
"When I see someone crying, I'm going to start crying. I know I'm in for a good cry later today," she said. "I think a beautiful thing to just compare all of that is when I've seen Spartans be down. I've seen those offer a shoulder to lean on. I've seen someone just take a little walk with someone I've just seen, like, just simply giving a hug. There's a lot of care and community and resilience here."
The campus was mostly quiet on Tuesday as students and community members visited Berkey Hall and the Spartan statue to lay flowers.
Tina Houghton, the assistant director at the Center for Community Engaged Learning at MSU, helped create a healing space on campus and said Tuesday's goal came down to comfort.
"We wanted to be just very low-key and comforting, and so comfort food. We have mac and cheese. We have pizza," she said. "[We were] just thinking about things that might bring a sense of just joy, caring."
Tuesday was hard for Houghton, but she said seeing people come together felt cathartic.
"Some things I get caught off guard. Like someone mentions 8:18, the time that kind of took me back a little bit," she said. "I think it's really therapeutic for me and for our staff to watch others enjoy what's going on today and to see that this is part of the healing process."
As Spartans move through this tough day on campus, Hoyumpa said one way the community can show support is simply by checking in.
"I've gotten a few check-ins today, and they've been from people who don't go to Michigan State, and those have honestly meant the world to me," she said. "Just like knowing someone else is thinking about what happened here and just sending that love and care and support is just really meaningful, but also just acknowledging there's a lot of us, myself included, that are still hurting."