Hokies Unite Again To Thank World

Hokies gather on the drillfield to form a message of thanks.
STAFF PHOTO BY KEVIN CUPP

PHOTO COURTESY OF MATT GENTRY OF THE ROANOKE TIMES

Thousands of Hokies gathered on Virginia Tech’s Drill Field Saturday morning to thank the world in a unique way.

In an effort to thank the world for its outpouring of support following the events of April 16, the Tech community came together once again in an event called, “Hokies Thank The World”.

Hokie Nation showed up in a big way as several thousand orange and maroon clad alumni, students and faculty formed the letters showing their collective gratitude. 

The crowd formed a large “VT” and spelled out the words “Thanks You” directly beneath it.

“I thought it was a really cool idea,” said senior biology major Eric Amateis. “I made a point to go because I thought it was something that if everyone did, [it] would be really effective.”

The event was coordinated by Peter Sforza of Virginia Tech's Geography Department in the College of Natural Resources and was captured by ground, aerial and satellite imagery.

Planes and helicopters took aerial photography while overhead the IKONOS satellite documented the event from space. 

Virginia Tech’s Center for Geospatial Information Technology (CGIT) helped to assure the geospatial coordinates for the “VT Thanks You” message and will help in the processing of the aerial and satellite imagery.

It’s unknown if cloud cover affected the satellite images, but any successful images will likely be available by Thanksgiving.

Other images from the event were premiered during the Virginia Tech-Miami game that afternoon and can be found online at http://www.hokiesthanktheworld.org/.