College in mourning after first year student passes away

Students across Imperial have come together to mourn the loss of first year student Georg Zänker, 20, who passed away on Saturday.

Georg fell from his second floor bedroom window in Willis Jackson Hall last Tuesday morning. Ambulances arrived at the hall just after 8:40am, and Georg was taken to St. Mary’s hospital.

He did not regain consciousness, and students were informed of his death the following Monday. His roommate has been moved to another room elsewhere in the hall for the time being.

Georg, who was from Berlin, Germany, was a Computing student, and was running to be the Department of Computing Society (DoCSoc) Webmaster.

An email informing Computing students of his death was sent on Monday. Professor Susan Eisenbach, Head of the Department of Computing, said: “Georg was an excellent student who played a proactive part in our student community.

“In addition to his outstanding grades, he enjoyed participating in Hackathons, and was running for Webmaster of DoCSoc. As a well-liked and enthusiastic member of our community he will be sorely missed. Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with Georg’s family and friends”.

Georg’s campaign website included his manifesto, which displayed his enthusiasm for the role and for Imperial in general. “One of the coolest things of coming to Imperial is the sheer number of events that are run by DoCSoc … consequently, I decided that I wanted to contribute to this superduperawesome society as being Webmaster”.

He was also an active member of Cross Country Society, and the German society.

Memorials were held for Georg, first on Monday in his hall for students, and on Wednesday in the computing department, where a non-denominational service and tributes from both staff and students were given. Those gathered were also able to sign a Book of Remembrance, which Professor Eisenbach plans to take to Georg’s funeral back in Berlin.

Nicolas Prettejohn, the current DoCSoc webmaster, second year representative for Computing and friend of Georg, read out an eulogy at the memorial on Wednesday.

Nicolas spoke to those present about Georg’s passion for his subject, how he enjoyed getting involved with departmental activities and how he was “always cheerful, smiling broadly and enthusiastic to make new friends. He took every opportunity to touch the lives of students across the department.

“Georg took great pleasure in being involved and I see that as a testimony to his character: He wasn’t content with sitting on the sidelines. That wasn’t Georg”.

Nicolas also spoke about how Georg was hardworking; he was a regular resident in the computing labs over the weekend, and had an insatiable appetite for his subject. Nicolas continued: “Not only did he work incredibly hard, there was always an awesome project or an exciting article to tell me about”.

Georg loved the companionship of his classmates too. “The way he saw it, we were all in this together”.

Nicolas concluded by saying how much Georg will be missed. “Georg’s passing leaves a hole in the lives of his family, his friends, his classmates, and the department.

“Given time we will begin to heal. Coursework will still be submitted and exams will still be sat. Studying here was Georg’s dream.

“And as long as we remember Georg he will live his dream through us”.

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Friend and roommate Jonathan: "I will never stop missing him"

_"Georg was my roommate, but more than that, he was my friend. He was a brother to me and I loved him; he had an infectious passion for his subject, for his friends, and for everything in-between. _

_I know so many people who grow to resent their roommates within a couple of weeks, but within a couple of days I knew that Georg and I were compatible, and that only grew from there. _

_We had a healthy sense of passive aggression towards each other when either one of us irritated the other one, and he never failed to make me laugh; albeit not always intentionally. He had a very dry sense of humour, often saying things about efficiency and complaining about English systems – he was also always smiling and many people that didn't even know him personally knew his face and his enthusiasm towards everything. _

_He was renowned on our floor of halls for making strange food, especially his daily sandwiches: these consisted of peanut butter, bacon, salad, and tomato sauce. He made these consistently on the same day at the same time, so if you could smell bacon late in the evening, you knew it was round about 11pm. Whenever he was questioned about these sandwiches he was adamant that it was normal in Germany, justifying how they were the most calorie efficient. After talking to his family recently I have a) found out that this is not normal in Germany and b) that Georg always made weird food. _

_He was one of the most authentic people I have ever met, always giving his honest opinion, regardless of anyone else's problems with what he said. He enjoyed his subject more than anyone I have met and he would often talk to me enthusiastically about something that I had no clue about, but he would discuss it with me regardless. _

_The last words I ever said to him were "Good morning", and the honest truth is that ever since I've woken up without him in the room, the phrase hasn't been true when I say it. My heart is broken and I will never stop missing him." _

JONATHAN MASTERS

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A few words from Welfare

People experience grief in different ways. It can take a long time to come to terms with death, and to seek help is a very positive and important step.

If you have been affected by Georg’s death and would like to speak to someone, there are a range of services available to you.

You can speak to your personal or senior tutor, your warden if you are in a hall of residence, the Counselling Service, or you can ring the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90, available 24 hours a day.

Georg was a popular member of our community, and the Union sends its heartfelt sympathies to his family and friends

CHRISTOPHER KAYE, DEPUTY PRESIDENT (WELFARE) dpwelfare@ic.ac.uk

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Samaritans (24 hr helpline):

Phone: 08457 90 90 90

www.samaritans.org.uk

Student Counselling Service:

Phone: 020 7594 9637

e-mail:_ _counselling@ic.ac.uk