A tragedy hit the Furman community this summer when recent graduate Eric Weigel passed away in a kayaking accident on Wednesday, June 5.
Although originally born in Santa Rosa, Calif., Weigel grew up in Asheville and graduated from Asheville School in 2009 with high honors.
Swimming was one of his many hobbies, and he worked several summers as a lifeguard. In 2009, the city of Asheville awarded Weigel as a “Community Hero” when he saved a three-year-old’s life at a local pool.
Weigel also had a passion for music. In 2007, he won the Asheville Area Piano Forum Competition's Advanced Division and started his education at Furman in 2009 as a music major until he decided to pursue chemistry his sophomore year. He graduated magna cum laude in May.
Weigel’s love of outdoor activities and adventure extended to his attendance at the National Outdoor Leadership School in Alaska and an EMT-Basic certification that he earned while taking a course on emergency medical training in California.
He was an avid member of the Furman University Kayaking Club where he got to know his close friend and frequent kayaking partner Robbie Gilson, who also graduated in May. Gilson said he remembers Weigel as “a highly competent paddler who didn’t care about documenting moments to ‘prove himself’ or attain any self-worth.”
Even though he had been recognized for numerous achievements, friends said Weigel was truly humble and rarely spoke of his accomplishment.
Gilson spoke fondly of a time when he, Weigel, and another close friend went to kayak the waterfalls in Dupont State Park but lost track of time and arrived an hour and a half late to a scholarship dinner. They excused themselves with a white lie, claiming they “had to fix a flat tire.”
“There was never a dull moment with Eric once I got to know him well,” Gilson said. Weigel had made plans to volunteer on a medical boat on the Amazon River in Peru with the non-profit humanitarian organization Project Amazonas. Friends said they would miss Weigel’s determination, kindness, and love of life.
“I have learned so much from him about living with humility and doing only the things in life that give me true, sustained joy,” Gilson said.
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In memory of Weigel, Furman graduate Robbie Gilson has posted a video of a kayaking trip Eric took during finals his senior year. The video can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5Uf9RzY6I0.