Ilan Rasooly, a 20-year-old senior at Cornell University, died Tuesday after falling near Commons 5 during a visit to the campus last week.
A 20-year-old man visiting this university died Tuesday after suffering injuries during a Jewish celebration last week, police said.
Ilan Rasooly, a senior at Cornell University studying hotel administration, was visiting friends at this university on Oct. 15 during the Jewish holiday Shemini Atzeret, The Cornell Daily Sun reported. Rasooly tripped and fell while running backward outside South Campus Commons 5 at about 11:50 p.m., University Police Chief David Mitchell said.
Emergency responders transported Rasooly to Washington Adventist Hospital, from which he was then moved to MedStar Washington Hospital Center, Mitchell said.
Rasooly’s funeral was held Thursday in Silver Spring. Rabbi Ari Israel, executive director of this university’s Jewish student group, Hillel, said about 600 to 700 people attended the funeral, including “scores” of students from this university.
At Cornell, Rasooly was co-president of the university’s Center for Jewish Living and was known for his commitment to the Jewish community, according to The Cornell Daily Sun. He loved to give campus tours and was “passionate” about a future in hospitality, the article stated.
Israel said he went to the same synagogue as Rasooly when they both lived in Silver Spring, and he remembers Rasooly’s bar mitzvah.
“He had a vivacious smile that I think is going to stay with us for a long time and inspire students to have that personality and engage others,” Israel said. “Some of us don’t really enjoy the moment of life like Ilan was able to. His memory lives in all of us and the students who are still here.”
Hillel rabbis and the Counseling Center are offering counseling sessions for students who knew Rasooly to help with the mourning process, he said.
