Greeks hold vigil for man killed during Meyran Fire

The weather matched the mood in front of the Cathedral on Monday night as Pitt’s Greek… The weather matched the mood in front of the Cathedral on Monday night as Pitt’s Greek community held a candlelit vigil for the residents of the house that burned down on Meyran Avenue in July and the man who died in the fire.

Mario El Nimri, an Oakland resident and employee of Joe Mama’s, was trapped in the burning house, which he lived in over the summer with four members of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity.

Umbrellas roofed the solemn onlookers and their tiny flames from the drizzle and added splashes of color to the damp, semi-formal attire as members of the Greek community delivered the 15-minute ceremony.

Tau Kappa Epsilon President Mark Ludwig, who lived in the Meyran house, delivered a eulogy for El Nimri.

El Nimri and Ludwig went to high school together and were both on the football team. They met again in Oakland this summer, at which time Ludwig invited El Nimri to live in the Tau Kappa Epsilon house for the summer.

Ludwig said El Nimri was remarkable because he was someone friends could talk to and was characterized by generosity and understanding.

He said El Nimri’s funeral in late July was a large gathering of 18- to 22-year-olds because of the effect El Nimri had had on people since high school, and he described how strange he had felt going to the funeral of someone he graduated with.

Ludwig said he was touched by the vigil and the help the Greek community offered after the fire by supplying temporary lodging and furniture donations to replace his lost possessions.

“The whole thing, the show of support from the Greek community, we appreciate it more than I can say,” he said.

Rev. Scott Kuechenmeister offered a sermon and prayer after the eulogy, encouraging those affected to wait for God to wrest good from the tragedy.

Other speakers included Panhellenic Association President Emily Guzan and Interfraternity Council President Dan Morrison.

Guzan said she was proud of the Greek community’s large presence at the vigil, which she quipped was supportive, “no matter the weather.”

Morrison also commented on the turnout at the vigil, and he estimated there were more than 1,000 people in attendance.

The vigil also lamented the losses sustained by the four Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity brothers from the fire damage. The fire also affected two Delta Zeta sorority sisters who lived in an adjacent building that was also charred by the fire.

“There were some things in the house that were irreplaceable – things that couldn’t just be paid for by insurance,” Ludwig said.

Dan Robinson, Mike Schmitt and Chris Yaw, the other three men who lived with Ludwig and El Nimri, were unable to attend the service. Robinson is taking a semester off, Schmitt graduated last spring, and Yaw is now serving in Iraq.