Earlier this evening, The University of Alabama held a service at Palmer Lake to remember the tragedy of the April 27 tornadoes and the lives that were claimed in those terrible storms that scoured the state of Alabama on that cruel spring day. The event was more than a remembrance of what was lost in those terrible minutes, it was also an acknowledgement of how the community has endured and a celebration for moving forward.

You are going to read some moving accounts of this memorial tomorrow by writers far more skilled than ourselves. Until that time, The Tuscaloosa News' Wayne Grayson was kind enough to forward us this audio of Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban's comments to the gathering. (::UPDATE:: His story on the memorial is now available as well.)

Although he spoke for just four minutes, Coach Saban encapsulated how we as part of the University of Alabama and Tuscaloosa community feel in the wake of this terrible event and how it has colored the promise of this upcoming Crimson Tide football season.

So we at Roll Bama Roll urge you to take the small amount of time needed to listen to Coach Saban's words. Then take a moment to reflect on this tragedy and what it has revealed about us as a community and how it will set the tone for our lives going forward. As Coach Saban sums it up, "God bless you and Roll Tide."