Candles illuminated the Reitz Union Amphitheater Friday night as hundreds of UF students and faculty gathered to remember those affected by the earthquake in Haiti.
With candles in hand, crowd members listened as speakers, including UF President Bernie Machen, Student Body President Jordan Johnson and Gators United for Haiti President Sky Georges, urged those assembled to rally behind Haiti.
“We should hurt just as they’re hurting,” Machen said. “We should translate that hurt into action.”
Georges, a native of Haiti, described his own connection with the country and its people.
“I was born in a hospital that might have collapsed,” Georges said. “I played tag with kids who might be dead.”
Georges, whose family was in Haiti celebrating his brother’s wedding, still doesn’t know the fate of his family members.
“I haven’t had a chance to really stop and think about it, but the uncertainty puts me in a difficult spot,” he said.
The night concluded with words of inspiration from the Rev. George Dumaine of the First Assembly of God in Gainesville.
Instructing the crowd to light their candles, Dumaine led a solemn rendition of “Lean on Me,” which moved some members of the crowd to tears.
“This flicker of light represents the hope that the Haitian people are holding onto,” he told the audience.
“The last thing they want you to do is to lose faith.”
Despite the sadness, Dumaine, a native of Haiti, believes the Haitian people can persevere.
“I’m convinced that even in the midst of deep tragedy, they have the faith to catapult them into a brighter future,” he said. “Even in the darkest night where there’s weeping, there will be a dawn.”
