By Jenina Hernandez

It has been over a week since a fire burned through the top floor of Our Lady of the Lake’s Main Building. As our campus community tries to settle back into normalcy, we are reminded of how quickly priorities can change. In one day, all of our worries about final exams and essays turned into concerns for our beloved community.

A building that stood through the Great Depression and World War II suffered a large amount of damage in just three short hours. The students who saw the fire from start to finish could only look on helplessly as their home succumbed to fire.

For more than a century, Main Building served as the beating heart of OLLU. The building was more than just stone and glass; it was a symbol of the humble beginnings that we came from. It was the foundation of the university and a welcoming face to the community.

Despite the devastating loss of the collapsed spire and the charred statue of the Blessed Mother, there is a sense of hope and new direction for OLLU. As is the case when tragedy strikes, we are looking at everything with new appreciation. Though we lost the spire and a piece of our history, we have been reminded of what we have left and what makes us so special.

We are a community that cares for one another, that serves our surrounding neighborhood and that relies on the providence of God to lead the way. The support and generous gifts given to the university have reassured us that our institution is not only loved by those who work and attend school there but by all of San Antonio.

Though we could only stand back and watch the blaze destroy the building, collectively we can build it back up and lend our hands toward making beautiful again this piece of our history.

Jenina Hernandez is a graduating senior at OLLU and the spring semester intern for 210SA.