One year. That’s how long it has been.

Some students, faculty or staff at Grand Valley State University may have forgotten, but for the family and friends of Shane Peoples-Welch, his memory is far from gone. Last year, the 21-year-old public administration major died suddenly from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (an enlarged heart) while playing basketball with friends at the on-campus Recreation Center, blind siding the campus community.

The doctor who performed the autopsy said that not only is the condition one of the leading causes of death in athletes but it has no visible symptoms which makes prevention and detection nearly impossible.

We do not boast the ability to even approximate in words the trails of heart that Shane’s loved ones have traversed this past year, but despite how isolated that kind of governing grief can make a person feel, they should know that his memory is not lost to the campus.

On Oct. 18, GVSU’s NAACP Student Chapter in conjuction with the Black Leaders Aspiring for Critical Knowledge, will be putting on events to honor Shane’s memory. First, the NAACP will lead a Heart Walk at 9 a.m. at Rosa Parks Circle, while the Black Leaders Aspiring for Critical Knowledge is putting on a five-on-five basketball tournament the same day from 5-8 p.m at the Campus Recreation Center. Anyone can join, and proceeds of the tournament will go toward a scholarship fund that will be set in Shane’s name.

With midterms upon us, it’s easy to bury our heads in our books and let our stressors consume us, but it’s equally as simple to take a few moments to aid in the healing of our peers. A strong support system is cruicial to healing, and students who can participate in these events should try not to think of the time they spend there as adding to the chaos in their own lives, but instead, mending the brokenness in the lives of others.