Jeremy Herbstritt and Lex Bozzo pose for a picture together. Herbstritt was killed in the April 16 shootings; Bozzo is organizing a 5K in his honor at Clemson University.
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Jeremy Herbstritt loved to run.
He ran around Blacksburg whenever he got the chance and faster than most people. He ran up until the day his life was cut short on April 16, 2007.
So when Jeremy's girlfriend, Lex Bozzo, wanted to do something to honor his memory a year after the shooting, she knew just how to do it - a 5K run.
"We went running together once, but he was too fast for me," said Bozzo, who graduated from Tech in May 2007. "We had always planned to run a 5K one day together, and we never got to."
Since Jeremy's death, Bozzo has taken up running.
"It's a really good stress reliever," Bozzo said. "But more than anything, it was something he was passionate about."
Jeremy grew up in Bellefonte, Pa., and graduated from Bellefonte High School in 1998. Upon graduation he attended Penn State University and received bachelor's degrees in molecular biology and biochemistry in 2003, and civil engineering in 2004.
Herbstritt came to Tech in 2006 to continue studying civil engineering.
Faculty at Tech remember Jeremy as a friendly and outgoing individual. Andrea Dietrich, professor of civil and environmental engineering, said she knew Jeremy through various social gatherings within the department.
"He was enthusiastic and very talkative," Dietrich said. "He was well-liked by students, faculty and staff and is really missed."
Jeremy would have received his master's degree this May. After that he planned on moving to Clemson, S.C., to be with Bozzo, whom he met at Tech in October 2006.
Bozzo is currently a graduate student at Clemson University in the city and regional planning program. She said she decided to hold the 5K at Clemson because the students there wanted to do something to honor the anniversary in some way.
"They could've just given money," Bozzo said. "But they wanted to do more. They wanted a deeper connection to what happened."
Another reason she organized the run at Clemson, named "J-Herb's Roaring 5K," is because it's a location Jeremy never got to see for himself.
"He would've loved it here," Bozzo said.
Registration for the race will begin at 7:15 a.m. on Sunday, and the race is scheduled to start at 8:30 a.m. The fee to participate is $16, and the proceeds from the race will benefit the Jeremy Herbstritt Memorial Fund at Virginia Tech, which goes toward scholarships for engineering students.
Bozzo said she's excited about the race and the support she's gotten from the people in her graduate program there.
Leigh Wood, another graduate student in the city and regional planning program at Clemson, is running in the race this weekend to support Bozzo, but also for other reasons.
"I'm doing this mainly because it's a way to help Lex cope with her loss," Wood said. "And also to make people remember what happened and to show Tech that we're thinking about them during this hard time."
So far, 50 people have signed up for the race, including Clemson students and faculty and local Tech alumni. Bozzo said she expects many more to register on Sunday before the race, but even if they don't, it doesn't matter.
"Jeremy would be happy if only 20 people showed up," Bozzo said. "He'd just be happy to see people doing something he enjoyed.
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How much more of this do we have to put up with before we can move on? I am sorry these people are gone, but these honoring events have got to lighten up. It's getting so depressing because we just won't let go.
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For people who lost loved ones, it will never not be depressing, and it will never be time to stop honoring their loved ones. But events like this aren't depressing. They are celebrating his life and his passion. I think it's fantastic, way to go Lex!
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There is a difference between sad and depressing. The story is sad because it reminds us of what we lost. I think moreso, however, events such as these are a rallying point for the human spirit. I'm glad to see people remember who they have lost and manifest that in a positive way. It's hard to speak of things being depressing, and acting like these events are burdening on you, when in fact you have not experienced what the folks at Tech did. We've all lost loved ones, but tragedies such as these are much more emotional and take a larger toll on many people because they are so shocking and abrupt. To those of you being critical I'd suggest you vent a little less and be more respectful, you having to deal with multiple ceremonies is much easier than having to deal with the tragic loss of a loved one. Let people greive how they wish, and try and develope a little empathy for what they may be feeling. I'm glad my Tigers are showing support, makes me even more proud to be a Clemson Alum.
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Thanks to "hokie4life" and "willthinksyourajerk", you have very nicely put into words how the loss affected people. Sorry for the comment by "deadhorse", who apparently just doesn't get it, and never will. I would recommend "dead" read the "we remember" on the Tech website about each of these wonderful and promising people, and maybe it would enlighten him/her. The races aren't any different than someone going to a loved ones grave and saying a prayer, or placing flowers. Their bodies have left us, but their spirit lives on.
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