Monday, October 19, 2009

Rest in peace, Jasper Howard

It's a tragedy when someone dies unexpectedly, but Jasper Howard had promise. He came out of a tough situation in Miami and worked his way to college, becoming a star cornerback on the UConn football team who would have been drafted to the NFL. He loved his mother, who worked hard to provide for him and his sisters. He was going to be a father. His murder on the UConn campus this weekend shocked and saddened the community, and I think his story is what makes this even tougher.

I graduated from UConn this past May, and I feel for Jasper, his family, his team, and the entire UConn community. I'm not alone. There have been several columns and blog posts in Jasper's memory, and I just wanted to link some of them here. I can't stop thinking about how senseless his murder was or how sad this situation is or how this could have happened outside the Student Union in rural Storrs, where we all felt safe. And, as of this posting, the murderer is still out there.

Former Daily Campus managing editor, associate managing editor, etc. Kevin Meacham has made three posts on the The Uconn Blog that summarize what a lot of people have been thinking. It also keeps a log of news on the case as it comes up.

One of his posts points to a great column about Jasper by the Courant's Jeff Jacobs.

Former Daily Campus sports editor Kevin Duffy also has a post on his blog, The Lost Generation.

Both of these alumni point out that their blogs are usually more light-hearted, and they'll go back to that, but right now, their thoughts are with Jasper. Add this one to the list.

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