I got matched up as Mud’s roommate, without ever having met him, the summer after my freshman year at MIT when he returned to school and the Beta house after a hiatus. I remember his dad sending him a lobster dinner for his 4th of July birthday that year.
For various reasons, he became an “adopted” member of our class of ’98 even though he should have been with the ’96 guys.
We spent 3-4 good years together in those days. We spent spring break of senior year at his parents’ house in Scottsdale, traveling from Tombstone to the Grand Canyon together and watching the Hale-Bopp comet from the hot tub and eating his dad’s BBQ brisket.
I remember ditching class to go to a bar with him. I remember him letting our friend Chris shoot him in the back with a paint ball gun. I remember him rigging up a system to keep his online character earning points while he went to Kenmore Square to eat after way too long in front of the computer. I remember him coming with me to buy a new pair of hockey skates and his contributions to our intramural hockey team.
As is the case with too many MIT friends, we scatter to the winds after graduation. It’s been great keeping up with him on Facebook and living vicariously through his pilot training posts and videos. It was fantastic seeming him a year ago last summer at Matt G’s 40th birthday party in NJ (We were disappointed that he didn’t bring you with him!)
As these things go, we never expected it would be the last time we would see him or talk to him in person. I can’t imagine the depth of your grief and hope and pray that you will find comfort in many memories shared about him.
Please pass my condolences to his parents.
May his memory be eternal.
Phil