More than 500 students will board nine sold-out charter buses tonight as they go to Atlanta for a fun-filled evening with Dawgs after Dark at Six Flags.

But for some University students, the park’s annual UGA Night marks the upcoming anniversary of a tragedy.

Last year, University student Tierra Bardley was killed in a car accident on her way home from the Six Flags event on April 19. The SUV she was riding in flipped several times after the driver fell asleep at the wheel, according to the police report. Bardley died at the scene.

Nadia Heidari, one of Bardley’s best friends, remembers the night she learned of the accident. She was at home in Marietta when she got an early-morning phone call, but she said the details were unclear and confusing.

“I kind of knew at that point,” Heidari said. “I stayed up the entire night. I just couldn’t sleep. I kept saying she’s dead; she’s dead; she’s dead.”

Heidari’s suspicions were confirmed at 10 a.m. She spent the morning with friends and family, making phone calls and remembering her friend.

She still remembers.

“I don’t think I ever spent a day with her when she didn’t laugh,” Heidari said. “She was so full of life.”

Bardley hoped to be a nurse, and she had a big heart for the campus organizations she loved, including Invisible Children and Make-A-Wish. Heidari said Bardley inspired her to take on bigger projects.

“She was always the go-getter,” said Heidari, who became close friends with Bardley in high school. “And now I realize, wow, I can do that too.”

Heidari said she has grown from the experience even though it was one of the hardest in her life.

Bardley’s accident also influenced the University.

The charter bus ride to Six Flags was planned as a response to last year’s tragedy, said Haley Houke, Dawgs After Dark coordinator for University Union.

“Any contribution we can make [to student safety] is good,” Houke said. “Five hundred cars off the road is that many more people that won’t get in an accident on the way.”

Though the Alumni Association sponsors UGA Night every year, this is the first year University Union has provided a bus ride to the event. Students who ride with Dawgs after Dark get a free T-Shirt and meal voucher. They will be treated to movies and snacks on the way to the park. The students paid $22 for a ticket, but the buses and other goodies were paid for with student activity fees.

“This is well worth the student fees,” Houke said. “If we can save a life, it’s definitely worth it.”

Emily Fincher, a sophomore from Mcdonough, said she was glad to hear of the bus ride.

“It’s nice just knowing that the University still cares and still remembers,” Fincher said.

On Sunday some of Bardley’s friends will have a picnic at the Intramural Fields. Fincher said the group would spend time relaxing, talking and remembering their friend.

“I see the type of legacy she left,” she said. “And I hope I’m able to impact people like she did.”