Throughout the week, students who have remained in Blacksburg have found support in a variety of places on campus and in the larger community, as local vendors and schools from across the country have shown their support in many different ways.

On Tuesday, at the convocation, President Bush, along with Gov. Tim Kaine, Vice President for student affairs Zenobia Hikes, and distinguished professor Nikki Giovanni, spoke to the crowd that filled Cassell Coliseum, and flowed over into Lane Stadium.

Bush encouraged the community of mourners by stressing “normalcy” in the community. He added, “Such a day will come.”

The largest response from the crowd came after Giovanni spoke and performed a dramatic reading. Her poem reminded the crowd that tragedy strikes everyone. After ending with “We are Virginia Tech,” the crowd began a series of cheers, shouting, “Let’s go Hokies.”

That evening, students gathered on the Drillfield for a candlelight vigil. At the vigil, Kaine, Steger and other administrators were present, but did not speak. Hikes,

Adeel Khan, president of the Student Government Association and Sumeet Bagai, the head of Hokies United, spoke to the thousands of students who congregated on the Drillfield for the ceremony.

The Drillfield remains a site of memorials for the community, as 33 stones have been placed, commemorating the victims of Monday’s attacks. Boards have also been placed under tents for students to sign and express their condolences for the community.

The memorials will continue this week as the university will hold a campus-wide moment of silence at 9:45 a.m. and release 32 white balloons and 1,000 maroon and orange balloons and sound a bell for each victim.

The community has shown an outpouring of support monetarily through the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund. The fund aims to provide assistance to victims and their families, as well as provide monetary support for grief counseling and memorials.

Mark Owczarski, the director of news and information through university relations, couldn’t give an estimate of funds already raised, but was impressed with the support shown.

“The response from Hokie Nation has been remarkable,” Owczarski said.

Schools across the country have sent banners, displayed in Squires Student Center on all three floors of the building. Visitors can add their comments on the first floor, where two posters invite members of the community to share their condolences.

Hokies United has been a resource where different groups from around campus can post events for the upcoming week online.

“Hokie Hangout” is one such event where students can be together to heal. Students have flocked to Old Dominion Ballroom in Squires to be with friends and other students. The event included games, discussion, music and food, free for all students.

Some students attended “Hokie Hangout” simply to get away from the solemnity of the rest of campus.

“It’s a good break to get away from memorials,” said Michael Puterbaugh, a sophomore accounting major. He and Kris Lee, a sophomore in management, went to “Hokie Hangout” after hearing about it from a friend.

“It’s a good way to change the atmosphere,” Lee said.