“He was always there,” Matthew DuPrey, a kinesiology graduate student at Point Loma Nazarene University, said. “He would always cheer you on in your highs and comfort you in your lows, no matter what was going on.”
That consistent friend was Chris Garabedian, an accounting major in his final semester at PLNU. On September 16, Garabedian died from blunt force traumatic injuries in a motorcycle accident, just one month before his 23rd birthday. According to The Coast News, Garabedian was riding north on Catalina Boulevard in the Sunset Cliffs area, when his Harley-Davidson crashed into a Jeep Patriot going eastbound on Varona Street.
While news stations may simply describe Garabedian as a motorcyclist from Los Angeles, his family, friends and professors remember much more. They remember him as the student who was always smiling and a friend they could count on.
Armine Derdiarian, Garabedian’s mother, said that before switching to accounting, Garabedian was studying engineering. This major proved to be a challenge to him, but once he switched into accounting, everything began to change.
“He really connected with the material and his confidence was back,” Derdiarian said. “His joy was back. His smile was back. … He couldn’t stop talking about his classes and professors.”
Suzanne Lair, an assistant professor of accounting at PLNU, taught Garabedian’s managerial accounting class last spring semester. What stood out to her the most about Garabedian was “his big smile and engaged personality during class.”
“At the end of class, he would always stay after to offer me a hand gathering papers or commenting on something we had talked about in class,” Lair said in an email interview. “[Garabedian] was a joy and a light, helping classmates work through a difficult assignment or asking good questions on the material. What I hope people remember about [Garabedian] is his smile and the joy that he brought to class and his interactions with others.”
While Garabedian was studying engineering, he met José Manjarrés, assistant professor of physics and engineering at PLNU. Manjarrés remembered Garabedian as a student who always exuded gratitude and kindness to his classmates and faculty.
“He was the kind of student who tried hard and complained very little,” Manjarrés said in an email interview. “I hope people remember him as a kind guy who was good to have around. He never pretended to be something else; always faithful to himself. He should be remembered as a humble, grateful individual.”
DuPrey, Garabedian’s friend, smiled as he recalled their three shared 8:30 a.m. calculus classes, remembering how they struggled through it together. But their friendship went beyond just the classroom — the two met on their first day at PLNU and lived in Klassen Hall together during their freshman year.
Duprey and Garabedian got close that year, going to the cafeteria together every night for dinner with their friends. When one of them got overwhelmed with homework, DuPrey said that Garabedian would always bring back food for that person.
“Chris would always make sure we were at least eating something,” DuPrey said. “We were taken care of.”
DuPrey recalled his favorite memory with Garabedian: an Easter egg hunt around campus during their freshman year. Their hunt led them to the roundabout near the Greek Amphitheatre, where they found the last egg covered in ants.
“Me and [Garabedian] are posing with our arms out [for a photo], holding the eggs, then the next thing we know, we notice the ants,” DuPrey said with a laugh. “We just dropped everything and we both freaked out.”
DuPrey said Garabedian was a part of his everyday life, so it’s not just memories that stand out to him: what he remembers most is who Garabedian was as a person.
“[I want people to remember] how caring Chris was and how much of an open heart he had for everybody,” DuPrey said. “He was always the one to stay after and talk with the professors, and just converse on everything and be fully open to engaging whatever he could.”
To honor Garabedian’s memory, his family has established the Chris Garabedian Scholarship Fund. Derdiarian said that because of how life-changing the Fermanian School of Business was for her son, the scholarship proceeds will go toward students entering the department.
“When we had to inform the school of his passing, they mentioned the tuition was going to be returned,” Derdiarian said. “I said, ‘I don’t want it back. I want it to go into a scholarship.’ Also, as much as people are well-intentioned with flowers, it’s very temporary. We wanted something where his legacy would live on. We just knew it would make Chris happy.”
Donations toward the Chris Garabedian Scholarship Fund can be made through PLNU’s website. If students need support, they can reach out to PLNU’s campus pastors, the Student Care office, or the Counseling Center.
Zoey Peters