Friends of Change honor her memory

Friends and members of the West Philadelphia community met Wednesday night to keep the memory of Kathy Change alive. In a forum co-sponsored by Counseling and Psychological Services, Friends of Kathy and The Christian Association, more than 20 people discussed "Kathy Change: Her Life and Mission." Change was a common sight on campus until she set herself on fire on October 22. Rev. Beverly Dale, executive director of the Christian Association, facilitated the discussion. "It's okay for us to be in different points -- we all go through grieving differently," Dale said. The participants used the forum as an "information exchange" between those who knew Change personally and those who were less familiar with her beliefs. "Every time I would walk past the peace sign I would just fall silent," College freshman Ludmila Zamah said. Zamah gave voice to her emotion by writing a letter to The Daily Pennsylvanian as a "statement on the apathy that I saw" following Change's self-immolation. And John Ewbank of Southampton, Pa., said Change "was seeking an adequate transformation of society rather than the band-aid reforms that some people spend their time on." Jay Mullings, a friend of Change's, said he reacted strongly to the activist's death. "I don't hold myself responsible for her action but I do hold myself responsible for my own insensitivity," he noted. Change's friends were divided over whether she was an anarchist. They agreed that she had her own vision, which she originally termed the "Evolution" and eventually called the "Transformation." Bob Harris, a founding member of Friends of Kathy, met Change in 1981. He said "the two things she always came back to were democracy and non-violence." David Downing, a 1981 College graduate, used to play music with Change at the Philadelphia Museum of Art on Sundays. "We're all under a lot of pressure to conform," he said. "What she did indicated a lot of my feelings." Many agreed Change was responsible for bringing out their creative side. She inspired her closest friends to be artistic in a positive way. "There's a positivity to the anger," Harris said. Anita King, another founding member of Friends of Kathy, is aggressively pushing for a memorial to Change. She passed around a petition at the meeting calling for a permanent remembrance on campus. King is also trying to start the Transformation Party that Change envisioned. "I got to tell her before she died that I believed in her 100 percent," she said. Many of the forum's participants expressed anger over the University administration's apparent lack of sympathy for Change. "The behavior on the part of this administration was shameful," an Anthropology graduate student said. "One of the reasons she wasn't recognized is because she didn't have a PennCard," he added. Though many dismissed Change as unstable, those who knew her were profoundly affected by her message, according to Dale. Even those who did not agree with Change's political views admired her for her courage. "That was the model she left for Penn -- it's okay to stand out," Dale said. "What pains me is that she may have left us on this planet not knowing the impact she was having."