On July 6, more than 80 people gathered on the front porch of the Collis Center for Student Involvement to honor the first anniversary of the death of Won Jang ’26. Jang drowned in the Connecticut River last summer.
Several of Jang’s close friends spoke about the lasting impact that Jang had in shaping their relationships with Dartmouth. Lydia Jin ’26, who organized the vigil, said that the physical space of the College reminded her of Jang and inspired her to return to campus for the weekend.
“I feel connected to him through being here, and seeing his footsteps along every sidewalk and hearing his laughter on patches of the Green where we’d eat dinner on sunny days,” she said. “I see his bike on the bike racks and his backpack at the library. He was loved here.”
Two students spoke at the twenty-minute gathering, also led by chaplain and director of the William Jewett Tucker Center Nancy Voegle ’85. Voegle and Jin distributed pamphlets with testimonies about Jang.
In an interview before the vigil, Jin explained that she “never feels more connected” to Jang than when she sits along the Connecticut River.
“For the first couple of weeks after he passed, I tried to avoid the river at all costs — I thought I would never go there again,” Jin said. “But I do feel that the river is somewhere where I feel like I can talk to him and have some kind of peace.”
During the vigil, Jin reflected on the positive lasting impact Jang has had on her life.
“While it's hard to feel joyful on days like today, Won has made me brave enough to know that there is light to look forward to, and I am strong enough to get through the dark,” she said.
Other friends recounted favorite memories with Jang, who “loved making sure everyone was fed,” Chaehyun Lee ’26 said. Jin read a written statement from Lisa Samoylov ’26, who remembered a time from her freshman summer on campus with Jang and Jin when they made Korean barbecue together.
“He kept frying the pork belly to perfection, making sure we had our fill before taking his portion,” Jin read from Samoylov’s testimony. “He really cared about his friends.”
In addition to his kindness, Jang’s lively personality — layered with humor and sincerity — left a lasting impression.
“He was stupid, sometimes hilarious, definitely a bit weird, but he was very sharp and underneath the jokes he always carried a deeply caring … and hard-working heart,” Lee said.
For Lee, remembering Jang means “refusing to forget not just with words, but with action, with care, with presence,” she said.
“I hope we carry him with us, not just in moments like this, but in how we show up for friends, for ourselves, and for each other, and the choices that we make when no one is watching, and in how we look out for the people we care about and even the people that we barely know,” she said.
The vigil concluded with candle lighting and a moment of silence.
Annabelle Zhang '27 is a reporter and editor from New Jersey. In the classroom, she studies Geography and Government modified with Philosophy and Economics. She enjoys creating recipes, solving puzzles and listening to music.
