By early winter at the beginning of second semester Junior Year, Dominik had missed a lot of school. In addition to his personal absences, the Washington area had several winter storms. Classes were cancelled, but the students were still expected to keep up with their reading and homework. Gonzaga lost even more days that cold…
Being overwhelmed, sad and anxious Junior year made Dominik withdraw not only from attending school, but also from the companionship of his friends. When someone would ask what was going on or where he’d been, he would say: “I’m dealing with some stuff”, or “I can’t tell you right now”. Sometimes, he’d try to explain…
Dominik’s experience of struggle after his burst appendix made feeling well again all the more sweet. During the Summer between Junior and Senior year, he worked at Ledo’s, did some schoolwork, played some hockey and began to gather again with his friends. When he was welcomed back to Gonzaga for his Senior year, he was…
I went to pre-school with Dominik, and then 1st through 8th grade with him at St. Bart’s. I also lived a few blocks away in his neighborhood so we would carpool and hang out together while we were growing up. We went to separate high schools: Dom to Gonzaga and me to St. John’s, so…
Dominik loved being a Study Buddy to the young men of a Cornerstone school in Washington, D.C.
At the start of his freshman year in college, PJ (a friend of Dom’s who was also in the accident) was sharing his experience with a new friend who’d heard nothing of the tragedy before.
Some of Dominik’s friends stopped into a church together on his 18th birthday in 2015.
More Wonder here
A glimpse of the day….
Often when I sit at my desk at Virginia Tech, I glance up to see Dominik looking back at me from that iconic picture of him pointing at the camera while wearing his hockey helmet.
