Pan Am 103 20th anniversary commemoration activities held

Pan Am 103 20th anniversary commemoration activities heldOctober 15, 2008Kelly Homan Rodoskikahoman@syr.edu

Syracuse University will hold a series of activities to mark the 20th anniversary of the terrorist bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. Thirty-five students studying in SU’s study abroad programs in London and Florence, Italy, were among the 270 individuals who died when the plane exploded over the skies of Lockerbie, Scotland, on Dec. 21, 1988.

The week of Oct. 19-26 is Remembrance Week on the SU campus. The University’s Remembrance Scholars, who represent the 35 students lost in the tragedy, have planned activities to remember the victims of Pan Am 103 and to educate the campus and greater communities about the impact of the tragedy and of terrorism.

SU will welcome representatives from Lockerbie, Scotland; SU’s study abroad center in London; and alumni to campus to participate in commemorative activities, including a 20th Anniversary Remembrance Dinner on Oct. 25. For more information on the planned activities, or to share a reflection, visit http://panam103.syr.edu.

Among the activities open to the SU and greater Syracuse communities during the week:

Through Dec. 21

• An exhibition of selected pieces from the “Dark Elegy” sculpture collection by Suse Lowenstein, mother of Pan Am 103 student victim Alexander Lowenstein, is on display on the Quad.
• “From Darkness Into Light: 20 Years of the Pan Am 103 Archives,” an exhibit featuring materials from the Pan Am 103/Lockerbie Air Disaster Archives is on display in the Hendricks Chapel Noble Room.Thursday, Oct. 23

   

• “Pan Am 103: Lessons Since Lockerbie,” a panel discussion exploring the larger issues of accountability and how to prevent such a tragedy from happening again, will be held at 4 p.m. in Maxwell Auditorium. Panelists include James Kreindler, a member of the Plaintiffs’ Committee in the Pan Am 103 families’ suit against Libya; Jonathan Dienst, an Emmy Award-winning reporter who covers justice and law enforcement issues for News 4 New York on such subjects as terrorism, white-collar cases and political corruption; Mark Zaid, an attorney who specializes in litigation and lobbying matters relating to national security, federal employment, foreign sovereign and diplomatic immunity, international torts and crimes, international transactions, the Constitution and the Freedom of Information/Privacy Act; Steve Perles, an attorney whose practice has included the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, litigation involving claims against or in defense of foreign governments before U.S. federal courts and administrative agencies; and Robert Monetti, former president of the Victims of Pan Am Flight 103 Inc. and VPAF103 representative to the Federal Aviation Administration’s Aviation Security Advisory Committee. Monetti’s son Richard, a 20-year-old SU student, was one of the Pan Am Flight 103 victims. The panel will be moderated by William Banks, professor of law and director of the Institute for National Security and Counterterrorism (INSCT). Panel co-sponsors are the Institute for the Study of the Judiciary, Politics and the Media; INSCT; the Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs; the Campbell Public Affairs Institute; and the Student Association on Terrorism and Security Analysis.
• “Celebration of Life: Remembering the Lives They Led,” a showcase of readings, performances and reflections to honor the 35 student victims, will be held in Hendricks Chapel at 8 p.m., sponsored by the Remembrance Scholars.Friday, Oct. 24

   

  • The Pan Am 103/Lockerbie Air Disaster Archives will be open for viewing in the Spector Room, Room 608 of E.S. Bird Library, from 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
  • The Annual Rose Laying Ceremony will be held at the Wall of Remembrance, located in front of the Hall of Languages, at 2:03 p.m. (the time of the tragedy).
  • The Remembrance Scholars Convocation, honoring the 2008-09 Scholars, will be held at 3:30 p.m. in Hendricks Chapel. A reception will follow in the lobby of the Heroy Geology Laboratory.

  Saturday, Oct. 25, and Sunday, Oct. 26

   

  • The Pan Am 103/Lockerbie Air Disaster Archives will be open for viewing in the Spector Room, Room 608 of E.S. Bird Library, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 25 and 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 26.
  • Story Archive, an opportunity for individuals to share memories and reflections on Pan Am 103, will be offered in the Safire Room, located on the sixth floor of E.S. Bird Library, from 10:45 a.m.-4 p.m. An appointment is required and may be made by e-mailing Kelly Rodoski at kahoman@syr.edu.
  • A staged reading of “The Bird and the Two-Ton Weight,” a play about life, death and family, and how they intersect with the Pan Am 103 tragedy, will be held at 8 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday in Hendricks Chapel. Both events are free and open to the public.

  Also on Saturday, Oct. 25, the 20th Anniversary Remembrance Dinner, will take place at 6 p.m. at the Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel & Conference Center; tickets are $35 per person; visit http://panam103.syr.edu/invite to register.

  In the years since the bombing, SU has maintained strong connections with many of the families who lost loved ones. Every year since 1990, 35 SU students have been named Remembrance Scholars, one of the most prestigious honors the University bestows. The University has forged a strong relationship with Lockerbie, and each year two students from Lockerbie come to Syracuse to study for one academic year. Through these scholarships, the University encourages students to exchange ideas and to educate themselves and the entire campus community about the devastating effects of terrorism.

  SU is also home to the Pan Am 103/Lockerbie Air Disaster Archives. Established in 1990, the archives bring together in one place materials generated regarding the bombing, makes those materials available for research and provides a place to personalize all 270 victims.

  SU’s Pan Am 103 20th anniversary commemoration will culminate with a special Service of Remembrance in Hendricks Chapel on Sunday, Dec. 21, the 20th anniversary of the tragedy.