The West Potomac High School cafeteria lights up with virtual candles as a minute of silence is observed at the conclusion of Wednesday evening's Celebration of Hope for Hannah. Photo by Louise Krafft.
Mount Vernon — UPDATE added Sept. 25, 2014, 3:32 p.m.: Upwards of 1,000 friends and supporters of Hannah Graham met Wednesday, Sept. 24 for an evening candlelight rally in the West Potomac High School cafeteria. Just before the rally started, Charlottesville Police Chief Timothy Longo announced Jesse Leroy Matthew Jr, the man charged with abducting Graham, had been arrested in Galveston, Texas.
Sept. 24, 2014, 2:20 p.m.: Hannah Graham, University of Virginia sophomore and alumna of West Potomac High School, has been missing since the early morning hours of Saturday, Sept. 13.
Last week, members of the West Potomac softball team met before Back to School Night to paint the school’s rock with handprints and the words “Bring Hannah Home,” hanging her special senior softball on a nearby tree.
“That was an emotional moment,” said Craig Maniglia, Graham’s softball coach at West Potomac.
At West Potomac Graham was known for being a responsible, hard-working and safe student. “She was always on time, always gave notes if she was going to miss practice,” said Maniglia. “That’s what makes this so tragic. She wouldn’t just disappear — go on a jaunt and not tell anyone.”
“It was weird because it wasn’t something we thought we’d ever have to do,” said former teammate and current senior captain Madeline Miller. “If we were putting Hannah’s name on the rock, it would be for some great achievement. Not to write ‘Bring Hannah Home.’”
“It was very upsetting,” said Torie Bolger, another senior captain on the softball team. “It kind of made it real to me. When I first heard, I kind of assumed she was going to be OK, hiding out or something. When it had been three and four days since the report was filed, it made it all real.”
Graham contributed to the softball team all four years of high school, earning a starting position playing left outfielder her senior year. She was looked up to by her teammates and named one of the team’s captains.
“She had the athletic ability, the total package,” Maniglia said of Graham while she was at West Potomac. “Talent, attitude, the way other players respect you. She fit that model completely.”
“She was so nice to everyone, so kind,” said Madeline Miller. “She always gave it her all. She was so dedicated, to the game and to the team.”
Graham also excelled in the classroom and behind the music stand as a saxophonist.
“I can say that Hannah exemplified the word scholar during her time at West Potomac High School,” said principal Alex Case. “She took the most challenging courses offered at our school and was a leader in the band, having played all four years in high school.”
“It has been evident at school that many students, families and staff were touched by Hannah during her time as a Wolverine,” Case added.
“Hannah is beyond precious to us, and we are devastated by her disappearance,” her parents John and Susan Graham of Mount Vernon said in a statement. “It is totally out of character for us not to have heard from her, and we fear foul play.”
Another community event, a candlelight rally, was scheduled to be held at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday Sept. 24 at the West Potomac softball field.
According to Charlottesville police reports and a statement from the University of Virginia, the 18-year-old left a house party and walked to the Downtown Mall in Charlottesville. That’s where surveillance tapes recorded the last visual evidence of her whereabouts at 1:08 a.m.
Around 1:20 a.m., Graham contacted friends via a text message saying she was lost.
Graham’s friends reported her to the Charlottesville police as missing at 4:34 p.m. the next day, Sunday. Though the police dispatched personnel and bloodhounds to search for her, they have yet to find anything.
On Thursday, Sept. 18, Charlottesville police announced a person of interest: a man a witness said was in physical contact with Graham on Saturday night around the time she was last seen on video.
Then at a press conference on Tuesday Sept. 23, Charlottesville Police Chief Timothy Longo announced that man, Jesse Leroy Matthew Jr, of Charlottesville, is now wanted for a class two felony of “abduction with intent to defile,” as well as two counts of reckless driving.
“This afternoon we reached that point where the Commonwealth felt we had sufficient probable cause to seek an arrest warrant,” Longo said.
On Saturday Sept. 20, more than 1,200 volunteers helped conduct a mass search for Graham around Charlottesville and parts of Albemarle County, according to a UVA statement.
“We absolutely are continuing our search for Hannah,” Longo said. “Even as we speak.”
Graham’s parents, UVA and the police are still urging anyone with information regarding her disappearance to come forward and call the dedicated tip line 434-295-3851.