Spring Break
Memorial plaque vandalized during weekend
Jeff Sullivan
Issue date: 4/21/09 Section: Campus
04/21/09 - Sometime between Friday night and early Saturday morning, a plaque in front of the University of Rhode Memorial Union, commemorating three students who disappeared in a boating accident in 2006, was vandalized.
The bronze plaque was placed on a small concrete base under a tree outside the Union and is valued at $1,000.
According to Bruce Hamilton, director of the Memorial Union, the memorial's base appeared to have been pulled out of the ground and shattered at the base. There was little to no damage to the plaque itself.
"We've got the plaque and we're going to reinstall it," Hamilton said. "It upsets us all quite a bit, but we're going to get it back in there as fast as we can."
Hamilton said the plaque was discovered damaged early Saturday morning and was brought to the attention of the Union staff around the same time. He reported the incident to police on Sunday afternoon.
"We have no indication of anyone who would have done it, and there were no major events going on in the facility, and we're putting this into the hands of the police," Hamilton said.
The plaque was installed in memory of Geoffrey M. Wilkes, Daniel P. Donahue and Fandia M. Shloul, three students who went into the Narragansett Bay with an inflatable raft, two oars and no life jackets after leaving a party in the Bonnet Shores area in 2006. The students were reported missing the next day and a community-wide search began. The National Guard, Narragansett Police and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management found their bodies a few weeks later in a coordinated search. In the years since their deaths, there have been memorial services for the students, as well as concerts in their memory.
Officer Mark Chearino said he doesn't believe the vandalism was intentional, and that it could have been an unfortunate accident. He said the culprits might not have known what the plaque was for. He speculated they might have thought it was a tree identification sign, like those placed around campus.
"I think it was a random thing and [the vandals] didn't know what they were doing," Chearino said. "I tend to think people are better than that, but you never know."
Chearino said more details will surface as the investigation continues, but Hamilton is not too hopeful that those responsible will be found.
"It's a long shot because it probably happened when the building was closed," Hamilton said.
The bronze plaque was placed on a small concrete base under a tree outside the Union and is valued at $1,000.
According to Bruce Hamilton, director of the Memorial Union, the memorial's base appeared to have been pulled out of the ground and shattered at the base. There was little to no damage to the plaque itself.
"We've got the plaque and we're going to reinstall it," Hamilton said. "It upsets us all quite a bit, but we're going to get it back in there as fast as we can."
Hamilton said the plaque was discovered damaged early Saturday morning and was brought to the attention of the Union staff around the same time. He reported the incident to police on Sunday afternoon.
"We have no indication of anyone who would have done it, and there were no major events going on in the facility, and we're putting this into the hands of the police," Hamilton said.
The plaque was installed in memory of Geoffrey M. Wilkes, Daniel P. Donahue and Fandia M. Shloul, three students who went into the Narragansett Bay with an inflatable raft, two oars and no life jackets after leaving a party in the Bonnet Shores area in 2006. The students were reported missing the next day and a community-wide search began. The National Guard, Narragansett Police and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management found their bodies a few weeks later in a coordinated search. In the years since their deaths, there have been memorial services for the students, as well as concerts in their memory.
Officer Mark Chearino said he doesn't believe the vandalism was intentional, and that it could have been an unfortunate accident. He said the culprits might not have known what the plaque was for. He speculated they might have thought it was a tree identification sign, like those placed around campus.
"I think it was a random thing and [the vandals] didn't know what they were doing," Chearino said. "I tend to think people are better than that, but you never know."
Chearino said more details will surface as the investigation continues, but Hamilton is not too hopeful that those responsible will be found.
"It's a long shot because it probably happened when the building was closed," Hamilton said.
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