Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Tragedy in Indiana

Andrew "A. J." Jackson, a freshman in engineering at Purdue University (West Lafayette, Indiana) and a member of the Purdue Ice Hockey Club, was killed Saturday, December 1, when the van he was travelling in lost control and rolled over in extremely icy conditions. Seven others in the van were injured, but released from the hospital the next day. They were en route to a hockey game against Holy Cross College (South Bend, Indiana) in Danville, Illinois. Please keep his family and teammates in your thoughts during this trying time.

Purdue Ice Hockey Clubpractice and conduct their home games in Danville, Illinois, approximately 60 miles (about 1.5 hours of driving time) away and the route is mostly rural. (At the time, it had been freezing raining and the area is extremely rural and might not have been a primary area for treatment. In West Lafayette, the roads were not as bad during this time). This illustrates their love and dedication to the game.

Purdue is my alma mater and I still live in the area. December 1 was supposed to be their last game for the semester break, which is sad. I'm not sure if I could, but I would like to see a few of their games next semester if possible. I couldn't care less about other Purdue sports, but I can see myself supporting these dedicated hockey players (if they don't mind a middle-aged married woman at their games).