BLACKSBURG, Va. – Tuesday night, students at Virginia Tech are remembering the victims of that shooting in Las Vegas.
This year marks the 10th since the mass shooting at Tech, and Tuesday night students met on the drill field for a vigil, hoping to show solidarity with those hurting across the country.
With the light of a candle, a group of students at Virginia Tech took the time Tuesday to think about those in mourning all across the country. It's the type of tragedy many of them know all to well.
"It brings back memories, I mean not always good memories, do you know what I mean? But there is good because we came together as a community and that's why I love Blacksburg so much," Virginia Tech student Melanie Do said.
That coming together is what vigil organizer Tobias Sweeney said the country needs now more than ever.
"I've seen a lot of people trying to find blame and specifically put it on a certain group for this shooting and I just really want to see people move away from that and to just come together and understand that we can unite and fight this hatred," Sweeney said.
Following the vigil, students wrote messages on a sheet that will be sent to the trauma center in Las Vegas where the shooting victims are being treated.
"I can't even imagine what they're going through, and just, even though I'm not there... just giving them a little message, like hey we're still thinking about you even though I don't even know you," Do said.
"What we want to tell them through this is that we stand with them, we pray for them, we mourn for them, and we cry for them," Virginia Tech student Alex Mun said.
Sweeney said, in addition to thoughts and prayers, he's encouraging people to take action.
"I also want us to have an impact on the people in Las Vegas, so if we can donate money or blood, I wanted to encourage people to do that," Sweeney said.
"We'll get through it together basically, and we're always thinking about them, because it's like we know what it's like, especially here at Tech," Do said.
A message of love and understanding that will be sent from Blacksburg thousands of miles to those who need to hear it most. If you would like to donate to the victims, you can do so at a Go Fund Me page that has been set up by clicking here.