Remembering Michael Hedges '19
Skidmore College mourns the death of first-year student Michael Hedges, 19, who died Nov. 1 of injuries sustained in a pedestrian-car accident. He was walking with fellow first-years Oban Galbraith of Shelburne, Vt., and Toby Freeman of New York City, when they were struck by a car on Clinton Street near campus. All three were hospitalized with serious injuries; Galbraith and Freeman are expected to make full recoveries.
Mike Hedges lived in Wilmarth Hall and had already made many friends at the College. A campus gathering in his memory will be held at 8 p.m. Monday, Nov. 2, at Zankel Music Center’s Ladd Concert Hall. As the Skidmore News wrote, “At such a small school, we all feel a sense of solidarity. . . . It’s easy to think, ‘It could have been me.’ But in times of unthinkable tragedy like this, it is that sense of solidarity and community at Skidmore that can be so valuable.”
A graduate of Lenox Memorial High School in Lenox, Mass., Mike was a standout in basketball, soccer, and track. He won a number of athletic awards as well as a Future Coach Scholar award. At Skidmore, he had recently joined the club basketball team.
In high school, he volunteered as a coach in youth basketball and soccer and worked as a referee. He was a member of the National Honor Society and won the Spanish Achievement Award, the National Latin Exam Award, and St. Michael’s Book Award for academic achievement with a social conscience. He was a peer mentor.
A lover of the great outdoors, especially the Adirondack Mountains, he held summer jobs there and enjoyed hiking, skiing, and water sports. For his first-year Scribner Seminar, he was taking “Earth System Evolution,” taught by geologist Richard Lindemann. “He had some background in the earth sciences and a curiosity about how the world works, which is why he took this seminar,” Professor Lindemann said. “Without a doubt,” he continued, “Mike was the most happy and cheerful student I've met in a long time. His presence in class was uplifting.”
Lindemann added, “This group is the closest of all the seminars I’ve taught.” Seminar classmate Alexandra McElhoe ’19 said, “Although Mike was on the quiet side, he had a great sense of humor. And he was kind: he always made a special point to say hello.” She also recalled that on the first class meeting, when students were asked to bring in something that meant something personal to them, “Mike brought in basketball shoes. He collected them.”
Seminar classmate and friend Luke Gersh ’19 said he and other friends routinely joined Mike for lunch after class. “We called him Magic Mike. He was just the most selfless person. He made people around him happy. If anybody else was in a bad mood, he’d give them a smile or a joke. But I never saw him in a bad mood; you couldn’t make him upset.” He concluded, “He was an awesome guy to be around.”
Skidmore’s Counseling Center is offering extended hours, and the dining hall is remaining open, at no charge, to provide another space for community members to gather, grieve, and process.
“This is a tragic loss for Michael’s family and for all of us at Skidmore,” wrote President Philip A. Glotzbach to the campus community. “To lose such a good young person of such tremendous promise in the prime of his life is devastating. As we grieve, we direct our warmest thoughts to his family and friends, both here on campus and in Lenox.” The president added his invitation to “come together to gather strength from each other and share our grief” at tonight’s 8 p.m. gathering in Zankel, with a candlelight vigil in the Thomas Amphitheater to follow.
Michael leaves behind his parents, Scott M. Hedges and Stephanie M. Hedges, and younger siblings Thomas and Katie, both high school students in Lenox.
