Written by Amanda Davis, Editor-in-Chief
Photo provided by David Holcomb
For many long-time Dayton locals, January’s record-breaking snowstorm was a blast from the past. The Dayton community received BLANK inches during last January’s snowstorm but received almost three feet of snow in a snowstorm that engulfed much of the South in 1993.
When Dayton had their last major snowstorm in 1993, David Holcomb, Vice President of Advancement and Marketing at Bryan, was quite busy during his snow day. Holcomb was a junior at the time and a Dayton local, and he traveled up to campus.
Holcomb remembers walking up I-27 and seeing Dayton completely covered in snow. “In my memory, it seemed incredibly silent,” Holcomb said. Holcomb said that there were no cars on the interstate and likened it to almost feeling like the end of the world.
During the ’93 snowstorm, the snow was so high that Holcomb and his friends made snow tunnels around campus. They tied a rope behind a 4×4 truck and body sled across the soccer field.
According to Lynn and Sally Lane, long-time Dayton locals and parents a Bryan alumni, Dayton has not seen a similar snow since the Blizzard of ’93. The Lanes were not in Dayton during the snowstorm, but they remember the howling wind and large amounts of snow that followed them all the way to a Spring break trip in Florida.
“Everyone was just paralyzed. You couldn’t go anywhere to do anything,” Lynn said.
The Lanes got their second chance of seeing a snow day when they were able to witness January’s snowstorm. The couple left early from a family gathering in South Carolina because of the warnings of intense snowfall. The Lanes did not expect as much snowfall as Dayton received.
Since they were still able to travel with their four-wheel drive, The Lanes spent the week helping neighbors who couldn’t leave their houses. “We were able to help one of our neighbors that she needed to go get some stuff done and we got her some groceries as well. Just neighbor helping neighbor,” Lynn said.
The Lanes said that although Dayton was unprepared for the snowstorm, the community pulled together to maintain a sense of community. Adam Sims, a Dayton local, set up a cold shelter for the homeless and temporarily displaced. Another Dayton local used his tree cutting machine to clear the streets from snow.
For Holcomb, the storm brought an opportunity to make memories with family and friends. He spent the week sledding with his daughters and helping neighbors who could not leave their houses. Holcomb described the experience as special. “I jumped on a tube that was going down with my daughter, and I’m thinking, man, this is a rare time that I could get to relive this and do that with my daughter,” Holcomb said.
Amanda Davis is a senior communications major and english minor at Bryan College. She is a Kansas City native and loves reading, writing and photography.
