An exceptional student, a compassionate son, a gentle brother, a loyal friend—these are the ways Sean Keefer was remembered during Friday’s memorial service at George Washington University’s Mount Vernon Campus.
Said to be quietly brilliant and especially kind, 19-year-old Sean was admired and respected by many.
“My son was a beautiful human being,” said Sean’s father, Chris Keefer, as he held his wife and teenage daughters. He spoke eloquently to the more than 200 people who had gathered in Ames Hall to celebrate his son’s life. “He will never be forgotten. He’s given us incredible strength, and whatever we do, we’ll have Sean as part of us.”
Sean—a freshman in the University Honors Program, who was studying computer science and mathematics—died in his West Hall room last week.
A gifted mathematician with a passion for coding, Sean was one of only four freshmen admitted to GW as a Clark Engineering Scholar, a prestigious program in the School of Engineering and Applied Science.
George Washington President Steven Knapp lauded Sean’s academic achievements and stressed the importance of taking care of one another during a time of great sadness.
“One of the differences we want to make in the lives of our students is to encourage them to see themselves as a part of a community of mutual support and respect,” he said.
While a student at Jesuit High School in Portland, Oregon, Sean interned at the e-learning startup OpenSesame and enrolled in classes at Portland State University. Mr. Keefer said his son chose to attend GW, because he wanted to experience a large city on the opposite side of the country.
Four weeks into his first semester at GW, Sean emailed the transparency group OpenGov, requesting an internship opportunity. “You should welcome me to your team, because I want to build great products that change people’s lives,” Sean wrote.
“I thought, ‘Who is this kid?’ How could someone that young be that accomplished and confident in himself, that fired up to help other people? Either he’s pulling my leg, or he’s going to be a rock star,” said Seamus Kraft, the foundation’s executive director, at Friday’s memorial service. “Sean was a rock star.”
Sean excelled at GW, taking sophomore- and junior-level computer science courses during his first semester, said Tim Wood, an assistant professor of computer science who taught Sean last fall.
“There are a few other people here from the class that I recognize. Sorry to say this to you, but Sean actually blew most of you out of the water.”
He said his student’s death was a great loss to the department, the university and the world.
Similarly, while many students struggled in Poorvi Vora’s computer science class, the associate professor of computer science noticed Sean was bored with the material. So on Friday afternoons she would meet with Sean to read more advanced coursework. While Sean was “very quiet,” Dr. Vora said, he “had the sweetest smile” she had ever seen.
“It was the professor’s reward,” she said. “That spoke a lot. You don’t need words always to convey warmth.”
GW students were not the only ones who celebrated Sean’s life last week. Mr. Keefer said there were memorials organized by Sean’s high school friends at universities around the country, including Boston College, Notre Dame and the University of Oregon—a testament to the hundreds of lives Sean had touched in such a short time.
Following the ceremony at GW, a line wrapped around the lobby in Ames Hall, as Sean’s classmates, friends and professors waited their turn to write a memory or message in the memorial celebration book.
One of the Keefer family’s favorite notes in the book read, "The joy of discovery is certainly the liveliest that the mind of man can ever feel," a quote from 19th century physiologist Claude Bernard. And underneath it, recalling Sean, “Rarely does one find such a vibrant mind invested in such a tender soul."
For his friends and peers, Sean’s vibrant mind and warm heart has left a lasting impact.
Even though he was three years Sean’s senior, Liam Cusack, a fellow Clark Scholar, said he was “inspired” by his classmate’s drive.
“He was always pushing himself to be better, and pushing his friends and the people around him to be better,” Mr. Cusack said. “He’ll continue to do that, and we’re just lucky to have known him.”