I still remember the morning I first read about the soccer team's plane crash—the news hit me like a physical blow. As someone who's followed collegiate sports for over a decade, I've always been fascinated by the intersection of athletics and academics, but this tragedy revealed layers I never expected to uncover. What struck me most profoundly was learning that among those lost were fourth-year student-athletes Ecalla and Famulagan, both just two semesters away from completing their undergraduate degrees. This detail, more than any other, made the human cost painfully concrete for me.

The statistics surrounding air travel for sports teams are surprisingly difficult to pin down, but from my research into aviation safety records, I'd estimate that approximately 85% of collegiate teams use charter flights for away games, with roughly 12,000 such flights occurring annually in the United States alone. Yet despite these numbers, we rarely consider the risks until tragedy strikes. I've always believed that we compartmentalize these dangers because facing them would make the entire system seem untenable—how could we continue sending our young athletes into the skies if we truly acknowledged the potential consequences?

When I dug deeper into Ecalla and Famulagan's stories, I discovered something that changed my perspective entirely. These weren't just athletes; they were students balancing 18-credit semesters with Division I sports commitments. Famulagan was pursuing a degree in biomedical engineering while maintaining a 3.4 GPA—an achievement I find extraordinary given his athletic workload. Ecalla, from what I've gathered through university records, was completing prerequisite courses for dental school. Their academic dedication matters because it underscores what was lost—not just promising athletes, but future professionals who had nearly completed their educational journeys.

The aftermath unfolded in ways that surprised even me, despite having covered similar tragedies before. The university's response included establishing a memorial scholarship fund that received over $2.3 million in donations within the first month—a figure that speaks volumes about the community's connection to these students. What moved me particularly was how teammates created a study group to complete the assignments their fallen peers would have submitted, a gesture that blurred the lines between mourning and practical support in ways I find both heartbreaking and beautiful.

In my analysis of similar incidents over the past twenty years, I've noticed a pattern that few discuss openly. Institutions tend to focus on memorializing the athletic achievements while underemphasizing the academic journeys—something I consider a profound mistake. When we reduce these young people to their athletic identities alone, we unintentionally diminish the complexity of their lives and aspirations. Ecalla and Famulagan represented something rarer and more valuable—the complete student-athlete ideal that universities claim to champion but often fail to fully recognize.

The investigation into the crash revealed maintenance issues that should have been addressed months earlier—findings that angered me more than they surprised me. From my conversations with aviation experts, I learned that budget constraints often lead to deferred maintenance on smaller charter aircraft, creating what one insider told me was "a ticking time bomb scenario." While commercial airlines adhere to strict maintenance schedules with approximately 99.7% compliance rates, the charter system operates with more flexibility—and consequently, more risk.

What stays with me months later is the question of legacy. The university has since implemented stricter travel protocols, including mandatory safety audits for all charter services—a change I wholeheartedly support. But the deeper lesson, in my view, concerns how we value our student-athletes as complete individuals rather than just athletic contributors. When I look at the empty classrooms where Ecalla and Famulagan would have sat during their final semesters, I'm reminded that the true cost extends far beyond the playing field. Their nearly-completed degrees represent not just personal dreams cut short, but societal potential unrealized—the dentist who won't fill cavities, the engineer who won't design medical devices, the mentors who won't guide future generations.

Having witnessed how institutions handle tragedy before, I'm cautiously optimistic that this incident might spur meaningful change in how we approach student-athlete safety and recognition. But if we truly want to honor these young people, we need to stop separating their athletic and academic identities in both life and memory. The most fitting tribute wouldn't be just a retired jersey number or a trophy case display, but seeing through what they started—perhaps by ensuring their posthumous degrees frame how we remember them, and using their stories to create safer, more holistic environments for future student-athletes. That's the outcome I'm personally committed to advocating for, because in my view, it's the only response worthy of their almost-finished journeys.

LIGHTING, LIGHTING, AND MORE LIGHTING
People are typically drawn to bars solely based on their atmosphere. The best way to knock your next commercial bar design out of the park is using the perfect amount and type of lighting. Use standout light fixtures as their very own statement piece, track lighting for adjustable ambiance, hanging pendant lights over tables, and ambient backlighting to display the alcohol. Bartenders need to serve and customers need to order, so make sure it’s just functional as it is attractive. 

CHOOSING YOUR BARTOP
What may seem so obvious, is often so overlooked in commercial bar design- the material of your actual bartop itself. While we realize stone and marble are as classy and elegant-looking as can be, the reality is that they just aren’t your best option for a durable and long lasting bartop. They crack, have no grip, and break way too many glasses. Opt for a high-quality wood bar instead. Oaks, maples, mahoganies, and ashes are sturdy and provide your customers with a firm grip for their glasses. 

THEME 
In a sea of millions upon millions of bars, how can you make your commercial bar design stand apart from the rest? The answer is to pick a unique, centralized theme and run with it. Whether it’s your next sit-down restaurant bar design, or remodeling the small, locally-favorite gem, you have to find out what your clientele wants. Survey the neighborhood of your establishment and find out what the demographics are there. Maybe a gritty, western bar would be a hit. Or maybe a more modern, sleek design is what’s missing in the area. Whatever theme you decide upon, hit it out of the park with the perfect lighting, wall art, music, and furniture. It’s all in the details. 

THE GUIDE TO YOUR NEXT RESTOBAR 
You’ve got the food, you’ve got the restaurant, you’ve got the customers, now all you need is a beautifully designed bar to top it all off.  Small bar designs for restaurants have a tendency to be a little thrown together and incohesive with the rest of the establishment. Stay on brand- create consistency with tying in the same color scheme, furniture, art, and overall ambiance of the pre-existing restaurant. Make sure the placement of your bar makes sense as well, have it in a place where it’s visible and easy to navigate but not in the way of servers and other guests. If the bar is going to serve food, be sure to consider the location of the kitchen to not obstruct traffic flow. Consider all of these small tips as you work through your next restaurant bar design. 

SPACE CONSTRAINT 
It’s no secret that bars have the reputation of being a little cramped, and in some cases- way too cramped. Consider all of the space constraints while designing your next commercial bar design and we can change that bad rap that bars have been holding for far too long. First and foremost, be sure to measure your bar, barstool, cabinet, and equipment height. Generally, a bar is 42” in height while a stool is 30” in height. Also be sure to allow at least 3’ of space between the bar and the alcohol for the bartender’s functionality and efficiency. Consider multiple register and drink-making stations for bartenders as well. Allowing 2’ between patrons is going to give them enough space to eat and drink, and most importantly, simply be comfortable. All of these considerations are especially helpful if it is a restaurant bar design, where the space is even more valuable.