Some of the many friends of Jordan Gugliuzza gathered on Oct. 13, his 21st birthday, to celebrate his life and honor his memory. Gugliuzza passed away after having a seizure on Sept. 6 of this year.
He had suffered from epilepsy all of his life, but kept his condition private and always kept his spirits up for his friends, who gathered on his birthday to remember and share fond memories of him.
“Jordan was a person that was going to do something big with his life. Everything that he was doing brought life and happiness to the people around him,” said Laura Moore, a new media animation senior.
Although he was not present to celebrate his birthday, his many friends and acquaintances were. A Facebook event was even created to spread the word about the vigil.
Amy McLeod, a sociology senior, planner of the event and Southeastern Louisiana University’s Secular, Humanist and Agnostic Network (SELUSHAN) member said, “At his memorial a lot of students wanted to do something for him and SELUSHAN wanted to do something too. It just made sense that we do this on his birthday.”
The vigil was held behind D Vickers Hall at 7 p.m., which was decorated with chalk murals and memorable quotes for and by Gugliuzza.
“Jordan was an amazingly genuine person. No matter what he said to someone, I always felt he was sincere,” said Avery Brent, a visual arts senior.
“I always thought he was impressive as a person. He would always be himself, no matter what, even with complete strangers,” said Leicester Mitchell, a graphic design senior.