A project of this magnitude needs a number of things, the greatest of which is someone who is able to manage the project, gain the trust of former (and current) leadership, raise a bunch of money, and have the internal filter to cipher out the political, legal, and egotistical BS.
If you are or can find that kind of person, there are some lofty hurdles that then must be surmounted:
1. People "in the know" stopped talking without their lawyers 10 years ago.
2. Most pre 11/18/99 Bonfire people and post-11/18/99 Bonfire people don't really see eye-to-eye.
3. A similar rift exists between late 80's Bonfire leadership and post-early 90's Bonfire leadership.
4. Most of the people who are willing to recount old Bonfire history either weren't really as involved as they claim and/or are stretching the truth about their tale.
5. As is with most history, Bonfire's is pretty bland. "Year XX we cut here, stacked here, and burned here." The interesting stuff is going to be out-of the ordinary, proprietary to particular dorms/outfits, or morbid. If chronicling Bonfire is your aim, you'll need a healthy (yet truthful) mix of both.
6. Nobody likes getting questioned about safety, risk, or how it was before they acted on it; and nobody likes to read about procedure, the minutia, or numbers. The bulk of the facts are the latter and are BORING.
7. '99 evoked all kinds of emotions, many of which evoked a finger-pointing response. Historical recounting should leave the fault-finding to the determinations of the courts. Rumors and hearsay have no place in historical accounts.
8. Original OC Bonfire (was)is PC without the BS. In the transition from '00 to '02, those motivated to do so decided to put up with a certain amount of "tradition" (and "debt"
while making it safe for all involved in order to make Bonfire a reality again. The people involved with that transition offer a unique opinion about Bonfire than those building it today.
That said, I tried to preserve the posterity of all of Bonfire from '02 - '04 and quit for lack of (or conflicting) interest. I was too young to understand everything when I helped build it on campus, and the off-campus Bonfire was too young when I was fully involved. Having retired from the board, I can see that any recount of my activity (or that of those around me) are available to you (or whoever attempts it), but tainted by the above stigma.
Best of luck.
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If you can read this, thank a teacher.
If you can read this in English, thank a Soldier.
