Dennis Sung Woo Kim, a hardworking University of Maryland student, ardent sports fan and compassionate friend, died on March 10. He was 20.
Kim, a junior materials science and engineering major, was found dead in Commons 6. Police do not suspect foul play, University Police spokeswoman Sgt. Rosanne Hoaas said. The official cause of death is still under investigation.
“He was one of the nicest people I know,” said Paul Bauer, one of Kim’s best friends from high school and a junior at Salisbury University. “Dennis was always in tune to how other people were feeling.”
Kim had a passion for sports, particularly football, Bauer said. The two encouraged each other to try out for the football team at Marriotts Ridge High School, and although they did not get much playing time, Kim helped keep Bauer entertained and upbeat on the sidelines.
Bauer said he most admired Kim for his outgoing nature, his contagious energy and his ability to make a positive difference for many people.
Kim “cared about people and how they felt,” he said. “He left a huge impact on my life and the lives of others, and everyone’s going to miss him a lot.”
Junior Saarah Javed, another friend from Marriotts Ridge, said Kim always made her day brighter — in the classroom or outside it. She said Kim had a lighthearted and silly personality, but she always knew he would be there for her when it mattered most.
“He was always laughing and was such a fun guy,” Javed said. “There were some times when I’d feel down or feel like I didn’t fit in, but he always had my back. … He noticed when I wasn’t myself.”
Kim was always working to make his mother and father proud, Bauer said. At his viewing on March 16, Kim’s father, David, expressed how much his son meant to him and how touched he was to see all the lives Kim influenced.
Kim’s father talked about “how Dennis was his pride and joy, and that those years with Dennis were the 20 happiest years of his life,” Bauer said. Whatever stress he felt after work each day when he came home “would wash away when he looked at Dennis.”
Kim loved his friends and the people around him and continually put others before himself, Bauer said.
Freshman Shawn Baek, Kim’s next-door neighbor for about four years, said Kim was always eager to offer him advice, especially about girls, school and other sensitive topics while they were growing up.
“He went out of his way to let his friends know he was there for them,” said Baek, a civil and environmental engineering major. “My childhood would not have been the same without him.” Kim is survived by his father, mother and brother, Christopher Sung Yun Kim.
“Dennis is going to be very missed,” Javed said. “Everything from his spirit, his bubbliness, his laughter to his smile.”
