Liviu Librescu

His legacy will live on forever (http://www.remembrance.vt.edu/biographies/images/L_librescu.jpg)

9:15 am on April 16, 2007 Liviu got an e-mail with the subject “Shooting on Campus.” For many people on the campus of Virginia Tech their lives were changed forever. In room 204 Liviu Livrescu touched the lives of his students. He always said, “Problems can and should be solved and it is our duty to act in order to do that.” That is exactly was he did that day. He was faced with a problem and solved it. Liviu is encouraging because of his rough up bringing, and countless setbacks, but despite all of his challenges the true Liviu shines through.

People always say “don’t judge a book by its cover.” Well, I believe the same goes for people. You can’t judge someone from the outside because there’s a whole other world going on inside of them. Liviu was born in 1930 in Romania. He grew up in a Jewish ghetto while his father was sent to a forced labor camp. He survived the Holocaust. After he went through those hard times as a child he was determined to become an engineer. Liviu studied aeronautical engineering and worked as a researcher at the Institute of Applied Mechanics of the Romanian Academy.

Liviu Librescu and his wife (http://www.wsvn.com/images/news_articles/389x205/0700418_VA_Tech_Professor_Liviu_Librescu.jpg)

For Liviu his life didn’t get easier there. He continuously was faced with setbacks taking him farther from his dream. After he graduated he put himself at risk of being arrested because of working in his home, smuggling papers to publishers in other countries. Later in 1975 Liviu and his wife wanted to emigrate to Israel. After three years they got help from the intervention of the Israeli government and were granted permission to move. In 1978 Liviu and his family moved to Virginia for a year. This later ended up being a permanent move. He had struggles moving into the United States because of being Jewish and people thought he was an ally with Romania. When he moved he also faced the difficulty of adapting to new surroundings and learning a new language.

In Virginia is where Liviu left his mark. On the morning of April 16, 2007, at 9:40am, a gunman entered Norris Hall. He had the potential of killing everyone is sight. The gunman killed innocent people, for no reason. He later went to room 204 and was banging on the door. He couldn’t get in because Liviu was holding the door closed, while his students jumped out the window to safety. Liviu waited till the last student was out before moving away from the door where he got shot and killed. He didn’t owe these students anything; he probably didn’t even know some of their names. Liviu was smart after being brought up the way he was. He knew what to do. He was faced with the problem of a person trying to kill him and his students and solved it by saving their lives. He will never be forgotten by those kids.

He will never be forgotten (http://www.remembrance.vt.edu/2007/biographies/librescu_stone.jpg)

People say when you die your life flashes before your eyes so make sure it's worth watching. Liviu didn’t have an ideal life. He was faced with many challenges that nowadays no one would know how to deal with. Some people can live 100 years and not "live" but for Liviu, that one day said it all. He was a great guy and his family knows that he did what he had to do. They are proud of him. He touched the lives of so many that day to give up his own life for others survival. No matter where you come from or what problems you are faced with, you can always make a difference and show people the real you and that’s exactly what Liviu Librescu did.