LOGAN — A tiny question mark on a shaft of wheat, initials on a saddle, a farmer's brand stamped in the dirt, shadows of grease under the fingernails of a hard worker, a wedding ring, a Band-Aid, jersey No. 17, a team of horses and a prize hog were the finishing touches that gave the 20-foot-long memorial individual significance.
Each item, carefully sculpted into the intricate design of one of nine bronze panels, represents each man who lost his life when a van carrying eight Utah State University students and their instructor left the roadway and rolled down an embankment north of Brigham City on Sept. 26, 2005.
"This memorial stands to ensure that future generations will know the emotional significance of this event," said USU President Stan L. Albrecht, who remembers all too clearly where he was and what he was doing on that "tragic day of the school's history."
"Time has passed, but we still remember," he said, prior to the unveiling of a large granite wall Wednesday, featuring a panel commemorating the life of each of the men who died: Steven D. Bair, 22; Dustin Fuhriman, 22; Justin Gunnell, 24; Justin Huggins, 22; Jonathan Jorgensen, 22; Curt Madsen, 23; Ryan McEntire, 22; Bradley Wilcox, 26; and Evan Parker, 45.
Many hands came together to create the lasting recognition of the lives lost, including family and friends, to "incorporate particular aspects of what each one loved and held dear," said Noelle Cockett, dean of agriculture at USU. "It allows me to remember those who have died and what we have lost by their passing."
Moments after the unveiling, 7-year-old Gracie Huggins approached the wall to capture the image on her cell phone of her older brother's panel, containing a No. 17 emblazoned on the side of an International brand tractor.
"He started out farming before he was even big enough to get on a tractor," said Joe Dell Huggins, Justin's grandfather. "He was always there to help."
Jenny Sue Jorgensen said the "lasting tribute" will help everyone remember how great her younger brother Jonathan was.
"Art is something that will last and it's important to remember them," she said, drying tears. "It helps to remember what they represent, not just to agriculture, but to each one of their families."
Monument Arts of Sandy was commissioned to design and construct the 7-foot by 20-foot memorial, weighing more than one ton and containing nine bronze panels and 10 slabs of granite. The top is graced with the skyline of the Wellsville mountains and the bottom displays furrows of a field just plowed, both familiar representations to the Utah State community, Albrecht said.
Artist Dan Cummings created the granite elements of the memorial, while sculptor Mark DeGraffenried, a 1993 USU art graduate, sculpted the bronze portion of the design.
"These panels not only represent the students and their teacher, they also represent the people whose lives were changed so drastically," DeGraffenried said, adding that it was a very emotional project to be involved with.
The monument will stand in the Taggart Student Center's Juniper Lounge temporarily until the planned College of Agriculture research and teaching building is completed. Students initiated the idea of a memorial and financial support from alumni and friends, as well as various organizations on and off campus, made the project possible.
USU students Jared Nelson and Robert Peterson were the only survivors of the accident.
"We lost nine friends," Albrecht said. "But they leave behind classmates, faculty and programs across a range of agricultural disciplines that will remain strong, robust and committed to the future health of USU's agriculture mission."
E-MAIL: wleonard@desnews.com