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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.
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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)
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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.”
— Stacy Chapin
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.
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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.
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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)
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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.”
— Drew Giacomazzi
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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.
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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.
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“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.
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The defendant’s efforts to change the trial venue are ongoing.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.
GARDEN CITY – A Boise-area girl is competing in the 2026 Junior Ranger Competition, and she needs your vote to advance.
Eleven-year-old Cali Lindsay of Garden City is currently in the top 10 in her age group. The first place contestant in each group will advance to the semi-finals, which will wrap on July 17.
The final round concludes on July 24. The winner will be awarded $20,000 and be featured on the cover of Ranger Rick Magazine. They’ll also win a trip with Jeff Corwin.
Cali’s mom, Emily Edginton, tells EastIdahoNews.com how the competition works.
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“You’re allowed one free vote every 24 hours. People can also pay (to vote),” Edginton says. “The contestants have challenges every week to learn about animals and share what they’ve learned. People vote for the answer they like best. If you have enough votes, you move to the next round.”
Cali needs to secure enough votes by Thursday in order to advance to the next round.
The competition is a fundraiser for the National Wildlife Federation, the largest private, nonprofit conservation education and advocacy organization in the United States.
Edginton says they recently moved to Idaho from San Bernardino, California. Her daughter acquired a love of wildlife living in Lytle Creek, a community near the San Gabriel Mountains and San Bernardino National Forest.
“She’s already like a junior ranger. We picked up trash (in the forest) for fun,” Edginton says. “We try to keep it clean because we get a lot of visitors up there in the summertime and they trash the place. It affects the animals.”
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Edginton says they moved to Idaho in February to be closer to family.
She’s grateful her daughter can be part of what she feels is a great cause, and hopes to see her advance, and even win the tournament.
“It’s a good cause, plus it’s a learning experience,” says Edginton.
To vote for Cali or learn more, click here.
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JACKSON, Wyo. — Springtime conjures images of adorable baby animals. Unfortunately, sometimes well-meaning humans feel compelled to interfere with Mother Nature by “rescuing” baby animals who appear to be alone.
The Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) issued a spring reminder discouraging people from intervening when they assume a wild animal is lost, abandoned or orphaned.
“While these folks typically mean well, the sad reality is they are often doing more damage than good when they intervene — and typically, mom was not far away to begin with,” IDFG shared in a press release.
“Here’s the hard truth,” the agency wrote. “Animal parents will periodically leave their young for an extended period of time for a myriad of reasons, whether it’s to search for food, to rest or to divert attention from their vulnerable offspring, especially if they sense danger. When it comes to wildlife babies, wildlife mothers know best.”
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In short, in an encounter with a lone duckling, gosling, deer fawn, baby bird, red dog or moose calf, do not disturb it. Instead, contact the state’s wildlife agency to report it. In Jackson, call the Wyoming Game and Fish Department at (307) 733-2321. In Idaho, reach IDFG at (208) 525-7290.
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