Senior Jeremy Bennett passed away the weekend of March 4 in Northern Virginia. The autopsy of Bennett will be finalized on April 4.
The Rotunda reached out to Bennett’s family, but they requested privacy at this time.
A candlelight vigil will occur on March 29 at 7 p.m. in front of Ruffner Hall or inside of Ruffner in case of inclement weather.
On March 25, Bennett’s family will be celebrating Bennett’s life in Fairfax, Va. at St. George’s United Methodist Church, located at 4910 Ox Rd. The visitation starts at 10 a.m. and the funeral will follow at 12:30 p.m., as per an email sent by Dr. Tim Pierson, vice president for student affairs, on March 16.
Bennett will be remembered greatly by his peers at Longwood University, expressed by senior Dylan Van Balen. a friend of Bennett's.
“Everyone immediately knew when he was in a room, and he always made people smile because he had such a contagious laugh,” said Van Balen.
When asked notable characteristics about Bennett, his laugh was a main topic of discussion.
“You could hear it a mile away,” laughed girlfriend Shannon Lindemann ’15. "It was just infectious.”
Dr. Melanie Marks, adviser to Bennett, could not hold back her laughter as she said, “The thing I will miss the most about Jeremy, by far, will be that laugh.”
“He was high on life and super laid back; he always had a positive attitude,” continued Marks.
Five classes and a study abroad trip later, Marks noted Bennett as a favorite student of hers. His intellectual curiosity allowed them to converse over any subject, whether it was economics related or otherwise.
“He (Bennett) would ask something out of the blue, completely tangential, and you don’t care because it was such an interesting question, that you would just allow the class to go down this path with him, because that’s the way his brain works,” said Marks.
Senior political science major and close friend to Bennett, Ian Douglas was enthralled at Bennett’s ability to light up a room and entertain every single person, talking about any topic, “economics and fiscal policy were amongst his personal favorites.”
“He was always the first to find humor in any situation, and when there was no humor in any situation, he upheld the banner of optimism for the future,” said Douglas.
After a study abroad trip to Costa Rica, Marks guessed that Bennett had caught the “travel bug,” she said, “He wanted to go to Thailand (another trip led by Marks) so badly…He always asked me if anyone had dropped out so he could go.”
Lindemann concluded that his heart was set on offshore accounting and Marks agreed that the trip to Costa Rica lead to his interest in international business.
“His ability to talk to anyone about any topic would have made him an asset in the international business world,” said Marks, “He had a special ability to connect with people. He was so sincere.”
Christie Baer ’16 felt the connection as Bennett’s roommate. She said, “He always emphasized how friends become your family, (so) my favorite memories of him are of Sunday family breakfast.”
Baer would make breakfast for their ‘family’ every Sunday and all their friends would come over. The only person she would let in the kitchen to help was Bennett, “He and I were always in the kitchen trying a new recipe and listening to music.”
Baer concluded, “He was more than a roommate, he was family … (and) living with Bennett was one of my favorite things about Longwood.”
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