A moment to remember a friend and student

On the church calendar it was Holy Thursday. And as a gentle, but chilly spring breeze blew, a group of graduate students, faculty and staff gathered outside the Schuster Building. Nearby was a small hole in the earth, a pink camellia bush and a plaque that read:

In Loving Memory of

Tricia Wolfe

Just a few weeks prior, Wolfe, a counseling student in the Seminary & School of Counseling, passed away from injuries she suffered after being hit by a vehicle as she walked to class from the Schuster parking lot near the spot where she was now being memorialized.  

One classmate remembered Wolfe as “a person who smiled all the time,” and a woman with a great work ethic and intelligence. Through tears, another remembered her as compassionate and willing to help those who were having struggles — “a breath of fresh air in so many ways.” A counseling professor noted, “I could always tell when she was agreeing with what I was saying and when she wasn’t,” bringing a round of laughter to the moment. “I appreciate never wondering where you stood — kindness and raw honesty,” the professor added.  

Counseling Professor Dr. Ben Mathew prayed for those still grieving, “that we can find our hope — our continued joy in the reality of what Christ has accomplished, and what Christ will complete when that trumpet rings and the dead in Christ with Tricia will rise first … and we who remain will be gathered together — what a day that will be!”

As the camellia was placed in the hole, Seminary & School of Counseling Dean, Dr. David Croteau, led the group in the Doxology and then invited Wolfe’s classmates to help plant the pink camellia in the hole by adding shovels of earth. He noted that pink was Wolfe’s favorite color and the camellia symbolizes grace, beauty, sophistication and perseverance.

“That is a good way to sum up what I’ve heard about Tricia,” Croteau added.  

The Easter season was likely on the minds of Tricia’s friends as they sang the popular contemporary hymn “In Christ Alone” and its third verse:

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Bought with the precious blood of Christ