Students, faculty and staff carried flowers, notes and tributes on campus to preserve Juniper Blessing’s memorial through September.
SEATTLE — Flowers, handwritten notes and messages of love filled a portion of Red Square in the weeks following the death of University of Washington student Juniper Blessing.
Students, faculty, staff and community members came together Monday to make sure these tributes don’t disappear.
Participants participated in the Honor Walk across campus, taking pieces of the monument from Red Square to Mary Gates Hall, which will remain in place until September as a place of reflection and remembrance.
The start of Pride Month makes the timing especially meaningful for some students.
“It’s the beginning of Pride month and I thought it was the perfect time to take a walk,” said UW student Job Albirger. “With everything that’s going on in the world right now, it’s important that we still have these events to show that we’re here and not going anywhere.”
Blessing, 19, was killed last month in a violent attack at an off-campus apartment. In the weeks since, students have left flowers, flags, cards and personal messages in her memory.
For Alberg, preserving the monument was very important.
“I’m glad to hear it’s permanent because I’ve heard some things online about trying to clean it up and demolish it and I don’t agree with that, so I’m glad it’s going to be put in a more permanent place,” he said.
While he said he would have liked to see the monument remain visible on Red Square during Pride Month, he understands the decision to move it indoors.
“I hope it stays here because it’s so visible at least during Pride Month, but I understand moving it to a permanent place and letting it stay there,” Alberg said.
The walk from Red Square to Mary Gates Hall was quiet but emotional, with participants carrying flowers and tributes across campus.
Alberg described his initial reaction to Blessing’s death as “anger” and said many students are still processing what happened.
“I never felt threatened by my classmates,” he said. “The love for Juniper is impressive, and I’m glad that many of my professors took time out of class to talk about it.”
University organizers said the memorial in Mary Gates Hall will remain in place until September, giving students, faculty, staff and visitors a dedicated place to commemorate the blessing.
“It’s good that we responded the way we did, but it feels like we can always do better,” Albirger said.
