[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 23]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 31518]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             ANNIVERSARY OF MARSHALL UNIVERSITY PLANE CRASH

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. NICK J. RAHALL II

                            of west virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 14, 2007

  Mr. RAHALL. Madam Speaker, for each of us, there are a handful of 
moments in life that stay with us forever, moments that years later we 
can still recall with clarity and conviction. Moments that shook our 
core and move our hearts still. For the people of Huntington, West 
Virginia, a rainy evening in 1970 is one of those moments.
  On November 14th, 1970 the Marshall University football team, coaches 
and supporters were returning home from their game against East 
Carolina University when their plane crashed into a hill just short of 
the Tri-State Airport. All 75 people on board were killed. In an 
instant the lives of everyone at Marshall and within the community of 
Huntington were changed.
  Every November 14th, the Marshall University Student Government 
Association hosts a memorial ceremony to honor the victims of the crash 
by laying a wreath at the base of the Memorial Fountain in the center 
of Marshall's campus. This year marks the 37th anniversary of the plane 
crash. This annual ceremony draws together the families of those who 
died that night, as well as members of the community, the school and 
the football team, who attend the memorial service every year. At the 
end of each ceremony, the fountain is turned off until spring.
  The fountain was dedicated in 1972 in front of the Memorial Student 
Center. The 75 points of the sculpture represent each of the 75 lives 
lost that rainy night. Sculptor Harry Bertoia hoped that the fountain 
would ``commemorate the living--rather than death--on the waters of 
life, rising, receding, surging so as to express upward growth, 
immortality and eternality.''
  A year ago this December, the movie ``We Are Marshall'' premiered 
across the Nation, telling the story of how Marshall University and 
this community rose from the ashes of tragedy. It told how the Young 
Thundering Herd found a way to keep the football program together in 
the fall of 1971 and gave the community of Huntington hope in one of 
its darkest hours. The team that suited up that year in green and white 
may not have had a winning season, but by taking the field every 
Saturday, the players and coaches taught us that it isn't just about 
winning, that sometimes it's about simply showing up and playing the 
game.
  The foundation laid by the Young Herd in 1971 paved the way for 
Marshall to become a football powerhouse during the 1990's and beyond. 
The legacy of the 1970 team lost in the crash and the team that took 
the field in 1971 is still with us today and is once again being 
honored with the ceremonial turning off of the Memorial Fountain.
  The bronze plaque on the fountain bears this simple, eloquent 
inscription:

       They shall live on in the hearts of their families and 
     friends forever, and this memorial records their loss to the 
     university and to the community.

  We will never forget the loss of those 75 lives on that hillside in 
1970. We will continue to honor their memory every time the Thundering 
Herd takes the field and the stadium fills with the cheers of family 
and friends. We Are Marshall.

                          ____________________