Editor’s Note, 11/18/11: After the devastatingly sad plane crash last night that took the lives of Oklahoma State women’s basketball coach and assistant coach, we began to receive a great many reviews of this post (pub. 1/28/11) once again. Our thoughts and prayers are most certainly extended to the families, team members, and Oklahoma State community for this most recent plane-related tragedy, and to those connected to the two others who died in the crash as well. Kelly Ogle at News9 just posted a Twitter photo of the girls’ team gathered around the kneeling Cowboy memorial, circling in prayer. You can view the photo HERE. ~ RDK
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by Rob Loeber
It is impossible to walk past the memorial and not feel…something. Front and center inside the doors of Gallagher-Iba arena is the tribute to ten men who had their lives cut short. A single Cowboy kneels and cries, representing the tears of a team, a university, and a state. Looking out at that Cowboy are the smiling faces of those ten men. It’s as if one look is at once a reminder of our grief and a lasting image of just how joyful life can be.
Thursday marked the tenth anniversary of the plane crash that claimed the lives of those ten men. Ten years later, an unspeakable tragedy in a field in Colorado, still echoes in the hearts and minds of everyone who lives in this state. Those associated with OSU have taken every step to ensure that no one will ever forget what happened on the night of January 27th, 2001.
Time may indeed heal all wounds, but some wounds need to be recognized and embraced for the benefit of those left behind. This is one of those wounds, and a celebration of those men is exactly what OSU continues to bring forth a decade after their lives were ended. The University honored those men beautifully on Wednesday night before, during, and after a game against Texas.