A mother and daughter hold one
another during a vigil for 8-year-old Martin Richard of Dorchester at
Garvey Park in Boston on Tuesday, April 16. Two bombs killed three
people and injured scores near the finish of the Boston Marathon on
April 15.
A crowd holding
candles gathers during a vigil on April 16 at Garvey Park in Boston for
8-year-old Martin Richard of Dorchester, who was killed in the marathon
bombing.
People walk along the barricade at Boylston Street on April 16, following yesterday's bomb attack on the Boston Marathon.
On the shared porch
of their home in Medford, Massachusetts, on April 16, Colleen Howe,
left, and Lisa O'Leary grieve for their neighbor, Patty Campbell, who
lost her daughter Krystle Campbell in the bombings.
Nicole Rand, left,
who ran the marathon, embraces with her mother, Maureen Joham, on April
16 as she recounts her experience in Boston.
Attendees of the vigil sign a large poster in honor of the victims of the bombing on April 16.
Mourners hug one another during a vigil for victims of the Boston Marathon bombings at Boston Common
A man carries balloons, flowers and flags to a memorial for victims on April 16, just blocks from the scene of the bombings.
People gather in Boston Common on April 16 for a candlelight vigil for victims of the bombings in Boston.
Hundreds gather at the impromptu vigil on Boston Common.
Emerson College students embrace one another at the vigil on Boston Common on April 16.
Attendees of an interfaith service at Arlington Street Church on April 16 hold candles in honor of the victims of the bombings.
A woman uses her
hand to keep wind from her candle as she stands with others around the
pond in the Boston Public Gardens after a candlelight interfaith service
at Arlington Street Church on April 16.
Mourners gather on the edge of the pond in the Boston Public Gardens for a candlelight vigil on April 16.
Visitors fill Arlington Street Church for a candlelight vigil on April 16.
Students from the
Clifden Academy hold an American flag and candles during a vigil on
April 16 in Dorcester, Massachusetts, in honor of 8-year-old Martin
Richard, who was killed in the bombings.
American flags
hang from a barrier on April 16 at a roadblock staffed by National Guard
soldiers at the end of Boylston Street near the site of the bombings in
Boston.
Mike Vitale, who lives in the Boston area, prays beside a makeshift memorial at a roadblock at the end of Boylston Street.
Emerson College students Rachel Ferullo, left, and Kathryn Waxman at a vigil on Boston Common for victims of the bombings.
Runners Judy
Adler, left, and her daughter, Rachel Schapiro, embrace during a moment
of silence at the Baptist Health South Florida Brickell Run Club event
organized on April 16 in Miami in honor of victims of the Boston
Marathon bombings.
Five-time Boston
Marathon runner Jose Sotolongo, center, reacts during a moment of
silence at the Baptist Health South Florida Brickell Run Club event in
Miami on April 16.
The New York
Islanders and Florida Panthers stand for a moment of silence for the
bombings at the Boston Marathon before their game at Nassau Veterans
Memorial Coliseum on April 16 in Uniondale, New York.
Members of the
Boston Red Sox observe a moment of silence before their game against the
Cleveland Indians on April 16 in Cleveland.
People walk
Boylston Street where memorials have been set up to the corner of
Berkeley after the barricades were moved back on April 16.
A woman prays at a security gate near the scene of the bomb attack where visitors have congregated on April 16
From left, Boston
Marathon runners Tammy Snyder, Diane Deigmann and Lisa Kresky-Griffin
embrace at the barricaded entrance to Boylston Street near the finish
line of the Boston Marathon on April 16.
Mark Trumbo of the
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim stands during the National Anthem
following a moment of silence to honor the victims of the Boston
Marathon bombing before the game against the Minnesota Twins on April
15, 2013 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Like thousands of others, the graduate student from China crowded
around the finish line at the Boston Marathon to cheer on the runners.
She had moved to the city in time for the fall semester, making friends and soaking up new experiences.
The iconic marathon was
to have been one such feat for her -- a chance to be a part of an annual
ritual so cherished by Bostonians.
And so she went Monday to Copley Square with two friends in tow.
They were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Two bombs went off within 12 seconds of each other near the finish line, killing three.
The graduate student was one of them.
Who she was
Her parents in Shenyang, China, wish not to have her name publicly disclosed, a request CNN is honoring.
She will remain nameless but not faceless, not forgotten.
Her photos on Facebook
show her enjoying a simple student life of home-cooked meals in modest
surrounding, smiles over warm cups of coffee, laughs with friends.
The day she died, she
posted a picture of her breakfast to the Chinese social media website
Weibo -- a bowl of fruit and some bread.
"My wonderful breakfast," she commented in English with a smiley face emoticon.
Then an explosion
After the two bombs brought the road race to an ugly halt, the graduate student's roommate posted a message on Facebook.
"God bless the Boston community," wrote the roommate, Li Jing, also from China.
The blasts wounded 183 others, including one of the two friends who had gone to Copley Square with the graduate student.
Profiles of the victims
Li learned of that injury -- but didn't yet know her friend had died.
"I have been unable to
reach her," she wrote on her Facebook page. "Everyone is very worried. I
have reported this to BU Police. If anyone knows anything, please let
me know. Thanks for everyone's help," Li wrote.
Friends consoled Li, offered suggestions on how to find her.
"Li Jing, I am so sad for your roommate...I will pray for her and pray for your soul," one posted on Facebook.
Death confirmed
Boston University's
president announced the graduate student's death in an open letter
published on the school's website Tuesday and confirmed that her friend
was wounded.
"Our hearts and thoughts go out to the family and friends of both victims," wrote college President Robert Brown.
The Chinese consulate in New York also issued a statement of condolence.
Neither identified the student.
"Some news outlets are identifying the BU student who was killed," Boston University tweeted. "Those reports are wrong. The victim's name has not been confirmed."
In China, the news of the graduate student's death set off a wave of sympathy on social media sites.
By Wednesday, netizens there had added over 17,000 comments to the deceased's last Weibo post about her breakfast.
"Wish there's no pain in heaven! May the girl rest in peace!" WenyiqingnianHarryChen posted.
Tuesday evening, two
university chaplains held a campus vigil for her and the other victims.
It was followed by a "town hall-style meeting" for those who needed
comfort and counseling.
The graduate student died alongside Krystle Campbell, 29, and Martin Richard who was just 8 years old.
Her friend, Zhou Danling, is on her way to recovery at a Boston hospital.
A love of math and chance
Before the bomb killed her, the graduate student from the city in northeast China had worked hard to achieve.
She won an academic
scholarship to the Beijing Institute of Technology, where she received
accolades for her excellent math skills.
She went on to Boston University to further that passion and was working on a master's degree in statistics.
She would have known how
slim the chances were that something like this could happen to her and
her friend in a crowd of thousands cheering the runners on a sunny day.
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