Seniors Sonia Schwartz, Josh Friedmann and Aaron Rubens (above) review artwork contributed by members of the Tulane community to observe the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's landfall (Aug. 29). The images (below) have been assembled into a "reflection wall" that will remain on view through the coming months. The project was organized by the Office of Student Programs.

To mark the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina the campus community is among those in the region planning memorial events.

On the uptown campus, a remembrance event called "Katrina: One Year Later" is planned on Tuesday (Aug. 29) at noon in McAlister Auditorium. The observation will include music, spiritual reflection, and a video presentation. The Rev. Max Zehner, chaplain of the United Methodist Campus Center and religious life chair, will give a brief spiritual reflection followed by a few moments of silence.

"We want an event that will be short and sweet, not celebratory," says Carolyn Barber-Pierre, assistant vice president for student affairs. "People are still struggling with this." Barber-Pierre, who has worked at Tulane for 24 years, leads a committee of faculty, staff and student representatives that is planning the event. She says the Tulane Marching Band will open the event and close with a somber rendition of "Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans?" and "When the Saints Go Marching In."

In an effort to remember the past year and the Katrina anniversary in a lasting way, the Division of Student Programs is creating a reflection wall to commemorate the experiences of the Tulane community. The wall will be on display outside of McAlister Auditorium on Tuesday (Aug. 29), and it will be rotated to various sites around campus after the anniversary. Members of the Tulane community were invited to contribute panels for the wall display--anything personally meaningful: a memory, reflection, poem, story, drawing or photo, using any material. Anyone who would like to contribute to the wall will have the opportunity to do so at booths located around campus.

"It's going to be interesting, as the anniversary is on the last day of orientation, with freshmen who weren't here last year," Barber-Pierre says. "I hope this gives them a better understanding about the people who went through the hurricane."

Also at noon on Tuesday (Aug. 29), a Katrina Memorial Service will be held in the Tulane University School of Medicine Auditorium (ground floor of the building) at 1430 Tulane Ave. Leading the service, which is open to the public, is the Rev. Donald Owens Jr., chaplain for the health sciences center, and Paul Whelton, senior vice president for health sciences and dean of the Tulane School of Medicine.

"This will be a time of reflection and comfort, and hopefully this will bring some closure for some people," says Owens.