Sydney Towle ’22 remembered for her bright spirit and love for life

Sydney Towle ’22 never dimmed her light, even through her darkest moments. She walked on runways, wrote her heart out and threw princess-themed parties for her friends. She loved the sun.

Remembered by her family and friends for her love for life and unwavering kindness, Towle left a lasting impact on those around her and the online community she built on social media while documenting her battle against cancer.

Towle passed away on Aug. 5 after a three year-long battle with cholangiocarcinoma, a rare bile duct cancer. She is survived by her mother Elizabeth Morrow and her brother Austin Towle.  

At Dartmouth, Towle double-majored in government and environmental science, wrote as an opinion columnist for The Dartmouth and was a member of Alpha Phi sorority. After graduation, she worked as a social media manager at Epic Games, according to her LinkedIn. 

Friends and family said her positive outlook on life and natural kindness showed up just as much in-person as it did online.

Austin Towle, who was three years older than Towle, said she had been a “ray of sunshine” since childhood and was always willing to “make friends with anybody.” 

“We were in elementary, middle and high school together and everyone knew Sydney just because she was so outgoing [and] so kind to anybody,” he said.

Morrow said one of her favorite memories with Towle was reviewing coffees for Towle’s coffee review Instagram account, as well as travelling with her, notably visiting Barcelona together. 

“Some of my favorite moments are when I would be in New York with her and she’d be like

‘Oh, we have to try this new coffee place,’ or she kept trying to get me to try matcha,” Morrow said.

Morrow said the family was “floored” with the news of Towle’s diagnosis in August 2023. 

The diagnosis “was like being hit on the side of the head with a shovel, for her, for us,” Morrow said. “To be 23 years old, at the beginning of your professional life.” 

Morrow moved to California shortly after Towle’s diagnosis to support her throughout the initial stages of chemotherapy. In summer 2024, the two moved to New York City, where Morrow said they found a “good support network” of Dartmouth graduates as well as treatment at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. 

Austin said he thinks back to their time as children, when they had “good quality bonding” by spending time outside. 

“Some of my favorite memories were Sydney and I just playing out in the yard or doing imaginary scenarios or just doing stuff ourselves,” he said.

Jacqui Byrne ’22, one of Towle’s closest friends, recalled meeting her for the first time in Topliff Hall during her sophomore year, later becoming “really close” by their sophomore summer in 2020. From learning to rollerblade, to going to the Connecticut River to sharing the bread at Molly’s Restaurant and Bar, Byrne said they did “everything together” and were “intertwined in each other’s lives.” 

“I can confidently say she was even more amazing in person and an even more amazing friend than you can imagine just from seeing her online,” Bryne said. “Everything that is on her TikTok and the way she presented herself, it’s the same in-person times a million.” 

Gabe Kotsonis ’22 — who had been friends with Towle since their sophomore year of college — said she was “everything that you wanted to be and everything that you wanted in a friend.”

“She was just so kind to everyone,” Kotsonis added.  

Towle’s friend Jessica Yin ’22 wrote in an email statement to The Dartmouth that Towle was “simply radiant, both a superhuman and the most human at the same time.” 

“She lived her values truly and left the world a better place. I believe that with my whole heart,” Yin wrote. “I am so proud of her and every day I am reminded that life is a beautiful gift, just as it was to know Sydney.”

Naina Bhalla ’22, a friend and fellow member of APhi, described Towle as “a ray of light.”

“Sydney was so kind to everyone and always made people feel welcome and loved,” Bhalla added. 

Byrne fondly recalled Towle’s passion for celebrating her loved ones’ birthdays.

“She was super thoughtful with her birthday presents,” Byrne said. “I have this plate she hand-painted for me that has my name as ‘Chef Jacqui,’ because I like to cook.”

At the Cycle for Survival race — a fundraiser for rare cancers — in April, Towle, Byrne and their close friend Zoe Dainton ’22 wore tiaras to bike, an homage to their tradition of “making everyone wear [tiaras]” when celebrating one of their birthdays, which began at Dartmouth. The tradition, affectionately called “princess parties” by Kotsonis.

“It is a big thing within our friend group, but Sydney especially loved that kind of stuff,” Kotsonis said. 

During the bike race, Towle “made an amazing speech … about how going through the rough moments of chemo made her grateful for all the fun and amazing memories with her friends and family,” Byrne wrote. 

In an email statement to The Dartmouth, Dainton — Towle’s APhi sister — wrote that Towle was “caring” and “resilient.” In Feb. 2020 and May 2021, Towle organized a pop-up thrift store at the College that stemmed from her “dedication to sustainability on campus,” Dainton remembered.

“I could not believe everything she fit into her days,” Dainton said. “She truly embodied living life to the fullest and being ‘happy to be here.’”  

In a follow-up statement to The Dartmouth, Austin wrote that Towle “loved” modeling, adding that she “walked in multiple shows in New York City” and Miami Swim Week in May, represented by Willow Models. 

Both as an Opinion columnist for The Dartmouth, in which she wrote about topics ranging from eating disorder culture and sustainability efforts on campus, and after graduating from Dartmouth, Towle cultivated a passion for writing and advocacy. She wrote about her life in New York City and journey battling cancer on her Substack and was in the middle of writing a book, according to Byrne. Towle also was a guest on various podcasts, including an episode of “Question Everything,” hosted by Danielle Robay, in November 2025 and on Miranda McKeon’s “Pink 365” podcast in January.

“She would go speak to huge cancer conventions and all these doctors and she would write these amazing speeches, or go on podcasts,” Byrne reflected. “She was a big activist for the things she believed in. That was her life passion.”

After receiving her diagnosis in August 2023 at 23 years old, Towle began recording and sharing her journey with cancer online, she told The Dartmouth in February. To her online community, Towle represented enduring kindness and resilience. 

Austin said he was initially not “mature enough to understand” Towle posting on social media as an “outlet” for herself during the early months of her diagnosis. He was ultimately moved when, after Towle passed, the family received messages from families dealing with cancer who felt “inspired” by her videos.

“I kind of realized that it [social media] was her way of dealing with this immensely impossible situation,” Austin said. “And it turned out to be such a net positive not only to her mental health, but there’s so many people across the world, so many people, have said that her journey has helped them in one way or another.”

Morrow said the initial outpour over her passing was “overwhelming,” but that “it can also be really nice to know that that’s the impact she left on the world.” 

In an email statement to The Dartmouth, Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation chief patient officer Melina Bachini said Towle “captivated an audience of [gastrointestinal] oncologists at their biggest meeting of the year,” and that her honesty throughout her cancer journey “renewed the clinician’s commitment” to other patients.

Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation senior director of communications Karen Templeton said that she was “blown away” by Towle’s “vulnerability” and “compassion,” noting that she lived with a “generous heart.”  

“I met Syd at our annual conference and interviewed her about her experience,” Templeton said. “For each question, she looked beyond herself and focused on the importance of participating in research or seeking federal funding for cancer research, not because it would help her in the immediate term, but because it could change things for others.”

Running, another “big passion” of Towle’s, became a way she advocated for cholangiocarcinoma awareness, Austin wrote in his follow-up statement. In high school, she ran for South Fork High School’s cross country team. Before she passed, she was training for the New York City Marathon this fall for the Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation team.

While comments on Towle’s social media often advised her to “be realistic” with her physical capacity, Towle would still go on runs before chemotherapy, insisting that she had to run before she started to feel its side effects, Austin said.

“We would say this internally with our family, ‘If anybody can do it, Sydney’s going to do it,’” Austin said.

Austin plans to run in place of Towle to “honor” his sister. He added that he plans to run wearing a necklace holding some of Towle’s ashes. 

“It’s like she’s running it with me,” Austin said. 

Kotsonis said Towle “didn’t want to let cancer get in the way of her living the life that she envisioned for herself and that she had planned out.” 

“She lived more life and did more things in her 26 years than some people do in their whole lives,” Bryne said. “How can you not be inspired by that?”

Morrow said that Towle wanted people to “just keep swimming,” adding that Towle taught her to always have a “positive attitude.” 

Austin echoed his mother, adding that Towle would always offer an “ear to listen” and a “shoulder to cry on.” 

“She just was always just so happy,” Austin said. “She was just a happy girl from such a young age  and she always sought the most out of life and found the good [and] found the light in all the darkness.”