Nate Krissoff

I just got back in town from DC and NY, and found my email inbox swamped by some email virus - over 5,000 messages worth of bounced mail, spam filter warnings, and undeliverable messages.  And then, in the middle of the chaos, I stopped and stared:

To Faculty and Staff,

I am very sad to report that Nathan Krissoff '03 died this weekend while serving as a U.S. Marine in Iraq.

Many on campus will recall him as a political science major and a member of the water polo team and swim team, which he captained his senior year.

I recall Nate.   I remember him in discussion sections in Introduction to World Politics - was he a freshman?  a sophomore?  He had intense eyes and a sudden, quirky grin, along with a head of bushy hair which made even more startling the shaved head he sported the last time he came through Williamstown.    Over three classes in four years, I watched Nate grow - developing a serious interest in international security issues, and gaining the self-confidence to ask uncomfortable questions.   He loved to chat after class about international politics and the latest news from the war on terror.  He was determinedly independent in his thinking, even a bit obstinate... and I can still conjure a vivid image of that sudden half-smile which would flash across his face when he realized he'd lost an argument. Barely a year after those classroom debates he was the counterintelligence officer for a battalion in Anbar province.  And now he's gone.      

More and more of my students go into the military after graduation, and every time they do I feel the same combination of admiration - for their courage and their spirit of dedication, self-sacrifice, and service - and a gut-wrenching fear for their safety.  I know all too well the toll the Iraq war is taking on these young men and women.   That men and women like Nate - graduates of an elite liberal arts college who could do anything or go anywhere - volunteer in full knowledge of what awaits them speaks endlessly of their character.  I'm proud of Nate, and devastated for his family and friends. 

I can only send out my deepest condolences, and a prayer that I not have to write eulogies for any more of my students any time soon. 

UPDATE:  you can find other memories of Nate Krissoff at Ephblog.   The flag is, indeed, flying at half mast.

Comments

[Jonathan Versen]

I'm sorry to hear about this young man. My best wishes to all who knew him.

[Leila]

What a loss. I am so sorry.

[Anastasia Moro]

Professor Lynch - what you wrote was lovely, and true. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.