On April 24, Quisqueyanos at Dartmouth held a vigil to honor the victims of the April 8 roof collapse at Jet Set nightclub in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Around 40 Dartmouth students and community members attended the vigil.
The event began with QUAD members handing out Dominican Republic flags outside of Baker Library, followed by a silent procession to the Latin American, Latino and Caribbean House.
While inside the house, QUAD members delivered speeches about the roof collapse. Ashley Reyes ’25, a Dominican-American student from New York, said despite not currently being in the Dominican Republic, she is still grieving alongside her people. Reyes said the roof collapse was preventable, describing the incident at the nightclub as a result of “years of neglect.”
QUAD organizing chair Elaisa Feliz ’28 said negligence added led to the concert attendees “paying the ultimate price.”
“May their lives be a call to never let negligence go unnoticed again,” Feliz said.
Anell Paulino ’25 told the vigil attendees that she knew Rubby Pérez — the famous Dominican merengue artist who was performing when the roof collapsed, leading to his death.Pérez was a close friend of her father, she said. At the vigil, Anell Paulino sang the chorus of Pérez’s song “Volveré,” which translates to “I will return.”
“It was one of my dad’s favorite songs that Rubby would sing when he would be with him,” Anell Paulino said.
Reyes explained that her admiration for how “tight-knit” the Dominican community inspired her to organize the vigil.
“If you're Dominican, we’re automatically family,” she said. “When I heard over 200 people died, I didn't know any of these people, but it still felt like something personal.”
“It’s a collective loss,” Anell Paulino added. Because of their close connection to Pérez — who used to drive them to school — the Paulino siblings are grieving his loss both with the Dominican community and personally. In addition to navigating the unexpectedness of the tragic event, the Paulinos are dealing with losing both a family friend and an influential Dominican icon.
Javier Paulino ’26, Anell’s younger brother, said “It was more so personal due to the fact that it was an avoidable accident … It just sucks that a family friend that we knew and loved dearly just died due to corruption.”
Vigil participants walked to the outside of the LALACS House. Participants were unable to light their candles due to the rain. Reyes led a prayer asking for peace for the victims, first responders, the families of those affected and everyone in the Dominican Republic.
The event concluded with participants of the vigil placing the Dominican flag in front of the LALAC House.
Mina Batra ’28 said that she attended the event to support her friends.
“It shows that no matter what you’re going through … there will always be a community of people here to support you and to grieve with you,” Batra said.
Javier Paulino and Reyes said that they weren’t surprised by seeing the majority of their friends attending the vigil.
“I feel like the Latino community is pretty small. We always try to support each other,” Javier Paulino said.
