MOSCOW, Idaho — It’s been a rough year for the University of Idaho community. On Nov. 13, 2022, the campus woke to the news that four students — Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen — were found murdered in their off-campus Moscow home.
On Nov. 13, 2023, the Associated Students of University of Idaho held a candlelight vigil in remembrance of the four Vandals whose lives were tragically cut short 365 days prior.
While there were tears shed, Monday’s vigil was more of a remembrance and celebration of the four victim’s brief time on campus.
“It’s important to remember all the good times and be grateful for the relationships we were all able to form with Ethan, Xana, Madison, Kaylee,” DJ Myers, a friend of Chapin’s, said.
Myers was one of four primary speakers, each honoring a different one of their friends. Heather Blaschka spoke first, remembering her friend Madison Mogen.
“Walking through Pi Phi today shows the genuine love and light that Maddie brought into so many people’s lives,” Blaschka said. “This love is something that Maddie would be proud to see and I know that if she were still here, she’d be the center of such joy.”
Up next, Madison Whitney, remembering her friend Kaylee Goncalves through a story.
“Kaylee gave me this book our freshman year called ‘The Sun and Her Flowers.’ In the book lies a page that states, despite knowing they won’t be here for long, they still choose to live their brightest lives,” Whitney said. “It almost feels like her future self was trying to tell me something, or that this was fate bringing this to me now.”
Then Zanna Miller honored her sorority sister she shared a name with, albeit a slightly different spelling.
“The impact Xana had on Pi Phi in her two years she was a member will last us a lifetime,” Miller said. “I am incredibly thankful to have known a person like Xana. Her memory lives in the walls of Pi Beta Phi, but her love lives in this community.”
Last but not least, Myers spoke, opening his speech with a reminder of why everyone arrived.
“365 days since my life changed forever,” Myers said. “Since all our lives changed forever.”
