Light Up the Night -Event Coverage-

Tuesday, October 29^th at 8:30pm marks the start of a walk called ‘Light up the Night’ that represents safety on the Saint Cloud State University campus and surrounding community.  Recently there have been some violent acts in the surrounding area of SCSU with the focus on the death of Colton Gleason.  The SCSU Student Government which is hosting the walk invites participants to bring candles and flashlights to Atwood Mall where the walk will start.

Colton Gleason was the main reason this walk was designed.  While walking two girls home down an ally late Thursday night, Sept. 20^th the now charged 17 year old Jesse Smithers told the driver of the car he was in to stop, while he then jumped out and punched 20 year old Gleason in the face.  It took one punch to send him to the ground where he smacked his head on the pavement.  The unconscious Gleason was then taken to the St. Cloud hospital where he regained consciousness only to die soon after.  Gleason left behind two parents and two brothers to mourn his loss.

Although Gleason did not attend the SCSU campus, many students were affected and scared by this tragedy.  They realized this could have happened to them or one of their close friends.  The SCSU Student Government felt they should do something about this to help people realize there are things going on to build extra security around the area and to make people feel safer.

The President of campus Earl H. Potter felt it was such a deep issue he needed to recognize it and do something about it; he wrote a letter informing the public of his actions.

“All of us at St. Cloud State deeply feel the loss that Colton Gleason’s family now feels as they mourn the passing of their son, sibling and grandchild.  Our collective sense of security has been shaken but we are thankful that the police have arrested a suspect” said Potter.

Some things Potter is doing to help keep the streets safe surrounding campus is as follows: first hand he teamed up with Mayor Dave Kleis with whom they walked the neighborhoods adjacent to the University to Welcome student and caution them to be careful. The St. Cloud Police Department (SCPD) and the University also meet monthly to address issues of safety in these neighborhoods.  The SCPD has put extra patrols in the area and results show that crime is down in the south side and that safety has improved with more awareness, more education, more enforcement and new ordinances, as stated in his letter.

“Truly, lives have been saved through these and other collective actions among the City of St. Cloud, the St. Cloud Police Department, the neighborhood associations and our own Student Government” said Potter. “Please know the changes we have achieved have been won by looking after our students and holding them accountable off campus and beyond.  Also know that we have made significant changes that have increased student safety.  Finally, please also recognize that we know that there is more to be done and we will approach this with great vigor with the city, the St. Cloud Police Department and the St. Cloud State Student Government.  We will be sharing news and plans with our extended campus family as work progresses.”

Hannah Muerhoff, Vice President of Student Government, and Ellen Dodor, Communications Chair of Student Government at SCSU believe that this walk will have a great turn out. 

“Were being optimistic” said Muerhoff. “We have a social responsibility to the students and the community to address this in a positive manner.”

They stressed that safety is a priority on and off campus and Student Government is trying to find solutions.  Hannah is hosting safety committees that include students, faculty, and the Police Department to shine more light on the issue of safety in the St. Cloud area. Although it took tragedy to bring awareness to the crime happening in the streets of St. Cloud, it also brought students and residents together to see to it that the crime is cut short and peace is regained on the streets.

“Good can come out of situations like this” said Muerhoff, “and this walk is one way to come show your support and bring back safety and comfort into the streets of St. Cloud.”