Idaho
Murdered Idaho students honored as campus hopes to 'bring that light back' nearly two years later
On a bright Wednesday afternoon at the University of Idaho, students and staff unveiled a new garden memorial to honor the four students killed Nov. 13, 2022, and other students the school has lost since.
The Vandal Healing Garden, created by students at the University of Idaho College of Art and Architecture, opened two days after fall classes officially began this week.
“It was so well done, and it was a day meant to recognize the time and effort of the kids who built it,” Stacy Chapin, whose son Ethan Chapin was among the four Idaho students murdered in 2022, told Fox News Digital.
One side of the memorial is dedicated to Ethan, Xana Kernodle, Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen, while the other side is a place for all University of Idaho families who have experienced loss to reflect on their loved ones, Chapin explained.
BRYAN KOHBERGER TRIAL SET TO BEGIN JUNE 2025 IN IDAHO MURDERS CASE
The University of Idaho unveiled a new garden memorial Wednesday in honor of the four students killed in November 2022 and all the university students who have died since then. (University of Idaho)
Stacy Chapin said she felt “amazing” support from her son’s fraternity brothers, her daughter’s sorority sisters, the university and the community as a whole.
“It was an amazing day.”
Part of the November 2022 side of the memorial includes a structure that reflects all four students’ favorite colors, Chapin explained.
The University of Idaho on Wednesday unveiled a new memorial dedicated by the community. (University of Idaho)
Ethan’s friend and fraternity brother, Drew Giacomazzi, was one of the students tasked with helping to create the memorial.
Giacomazzi told Fox News Digital the garden was an 18-month project, completely funded by the community, that involved lots of meetings between students, school staff and design professionals. He said he was “at a loss for words” when he saw the final outcome this week.
In his speech Wednesday, he said the university felt “dark, cold and distant” after the murders, and “the intent of the Healing Garden is to build a unique space that unites University of Idaho students, alumni and the Moscow community.”
“Do more of what you love to honor Kaylee. Spread that love with random acts of kindness to honor Maddie. Be silly and do something spontaneous and fun to honor Xana. And tell stories with an abundance of laughter to honor Ethan,” Giacomazzi said in his speech.
The University of Idaho recently unveiled a new memorial dedicated by the community. (University of Idaho)
The University of Idaho said in a statement posted on Facebook that the Vandal Healing Garden and Memorial was “designed, vetted and built” by students with guidance from faculty and alumni. The memorial is “a testament to the inspirational response from our community and a symbol of” the university’s strength as a community, the statement said.
The school added that the garden “is a space to come together in moments of grief and reflection and to honor the Vandal students” that the school has lost.
IDAHO STUDENTS’ FORMER ROOMMATE BREAKS SILENCE AS JUDGE CLOSES SUSPECT KOHBERGER’S NEXT HEARING
Nov. 13 will mark two years since 20-year-old Kernodle and Chapin and 21-year-old Goncalves and Mogen were murdered in a student rental home just yards from campus in the middle of the night.
Ethan Chapin’s name is displayed on the University of Idaho Vandal Healing Garden memorial. (University of Idaho)
Xana Kernodle’s name is displayed on the University of Idaho Vandal Healing Garden memorial. (University of Idaho)
Kaylee Goncalves’ name is displayed on the University of Idaho Vandal Healing Garden memorial. (University of Idaho)
Madison May Mogen’s name is displayed on the University of Idaho Vandal Healing Garden memorial. (University of Idaho)
Giacomazzi said he knew all four victims but was closest to Ethan, who was the kind of person to brighten an entire room with his laughter and make others feel “welcome.” He was in the airport visiting his sister in New York when he heard Ethan had died, and he recalled being in a state of shock when he found out what had happened.
“It was a really scary moment, and coming back it was surreal seeing news cameras there, and we just didn’t know what to do. Our fraternity didn’t know what to do. I think the university was just kind of stunned and didn’t know what to do. It was a weird time in Moscow,” Giacomazzi recalled.
“This Healing Garden is just an area to bring that light back to campus.”
The memorial will help students “go through those emotions” of grief “and feel safe while doing it,” Giacomazzi added. “There are obviously buildings and areas of campus like that before, but there was nothing purposefully designed and dedicated to those kinds of emotions, and this Healing Garden is just an area to bring that light back to campus.”
University of Idaho students Xana Kernodle, Ethan Chapin, Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen died Nov. 13, 2022. (University of Idaho)
University of Idaho President Scott Green said in his remarks Wednesday that the tragedy provided the “impetus” for the garden memorial.
“We lost four shining lights full of life and promise. This garden memorial is dedicated to them and the University of Idaho,” Green said. “It’s a reminder that even in times of sadness and darkness, we can always find light.”
Suspect Bryan Kohberger, a 29-year-old criminology Ph.D. student at the neighboring University of Washington in Pullman, is suspected of stabbing the four students in their rooms in the early morning hours of that Sunday. He pleaded not guilty and is expected to stand trial next year.
BRYAN KOHBERGER ASKS COURT FOR CHANGE OF VENUE AFTER DELAYS IN IDAHO STUDENT MURDERS TRIAL
Madison Mogen, top left, smiles on the shoulders of her best friend, Kaylee Goncalves, as they pose with Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and two other housemates in Goncalves’ final Instagram post, shared the day before the four students were stabbed to death. (@kayleegoncalves/Instagram)
Kohberger is asking for his trial to be moved out of Latah County, the close-knit college community where the murders took place.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“A fair and impartial jury cannot be found in Latah County owing to the extensive, inflammatory pretrial publicity, allegations made about Mr. Kohberger to the public by media that will be inadmissible at his trial, the small size of the community, the salacious nature of the alleged crimes, and the severity of the charges Mr. Kohberger faces,” Anne Taylor, Kohberger’s lead defense attorney, wrote in a February court filing.
The defendant’s efforts to change the trial venue are ongoing.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.
BLACKFOOT — A large contingent of Blackfoot Police officers has cordoned off an area near the Taco Bell on Parkway Drive in Blackfoot.
Police responded around 5 p.m., according to multiple witnesses who contacted EastIdahoNews.com.
EastIdahoNews.com has reached out to Blackfoot Police for details.
We will update this story as we learn more.
=htmlentities(get_the_title())?>%0D%0A%0D%0A=get_permalink()?>%0D%0A%0D%0A=htmlentities(‘For more stories like this one, be sure to visit https://www.eastidahonews.com/ for all of the latest news, community events and more.’)?>&subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20from%20EastIdahoNews” class=”fa-stack jDialog”>
MISSOULA, Mont. — An Idaho Falls angler is back in the Idaho record books after landing a record-setting lake trout at Payette Lake.
Idaho Fish and Game said Dylan Smith caught and released a 43.25-inch lake trout on May 2, setting a new state catch-and-release record for the species. The fish surpassed the previous record of 42 inches.
The catch marks Smith’s second appearance in Idaho’s record books. He previously held the state catch-and-release lake trout record after landing a trophy fish in 2018 before that mark was later broken.
According to Fish and Game, Payette Lake has become one of Idaho’s premier lake trout fisheries thanks to years of management efforts aimed at improving both lake trout and kokanee populations.
Pride Month looks different this June along Boise’s Harrison Boulevard, where a long-standing tradition of hanging Pride flags on lamp posts has been put on hold after a new state law restricted which flags can be flown on government property.
For several years, Pride flags lined lamp posts along Harrison Boulevard in Boise’s North End neighborhood. But Idaho House Bill 561, signed by Gov. Brad Little in March, restricts which flags can be flown on government property, including the City of Boise’s Harrison lamp posts.
In response, a group of neighbors formed Pride North End and launched a distribution effort to help residents show support from their own front yards. The group has been making Pride flags and yard signs available to people who want to display them at home.
“I thought that I would…be a personal example of ‘yes, this is what I do.’ This is what I believe in,” said Edna Schochat, a North End resident.
Pride North End has already distributed more than 900-yard signs and 250 flags. The group’s original donation goal was around $2,000 to order 100 flags and 200 yard signs, but it has exceeded that GoFundMe goal, reaching $10,000 worth of donations.
The group plans to continue holding public flag and sign distributions through the end of the month.
“We cannot just say something without doing something that proves that we mean what we say,” Schochat said.
Pride North End said any leftover funds after materials are distributed will go to local LGBTQ+ nonprofits. A link to the group’s GoFundMe can be found here.
-
Lifestyle28 minutes agoGreat movies you may have missed : Pop Culture Happy Hour
-
Technology36 minutes agoThe best Apple deals you can get during Prime Day
-
World43 minutes agoTrump says Venezuela earthquakes left ‘devastating number of deaths’ as US readies aid
-
Politics46 minutes agoClosed-door outburst turns into victory for Trump’s Iran negotiations
-
Health51 minutes agoFormer reality star opens up about new diagnosis after years-long health ordeal
-
Sports58 minutes agoTerrion Arnold, Lions’ 2024 first-round pick, charged with kidnapping and armed robbery in Florida
-
Business1 hour agoAn electric truck for less than $25,000? Deliveries begin this year
-
Entertainment1 hour agoKylie Jenner hit with third lawsuit as former chef claims Palm Springs party led to miscarriage
