Tree, plaque honor student

The sun was shining its rays directly on the meadow between Ballantine and Woodburn Halls Friday as more than 50 mourners gathered to remember the life of former student Brandon Rotstein. \nThe memorial consisted of a tree planting and plaque presentation in the presence of Rotstein's family and friends.\nSenior Sarah Nedwick, a close friend of Rotstein's since high school, organized the event to honor his memory. \n"He was a loveable guy that touched everyone's life in a different way," she said. "He was always there to put a smile on your face no matter what he had to do. Brandon had a larger-than-life personality and lit up every room he set foot in."\nRotstein died from cardiac arrest and gastrointestinal complications last March while vacationing in Acapulco, Mexico during spring break. He passed away in the presence of his mother while being transported in a small plane to a Chicago hospital.\nBefore the ceremony, Rotstein's parents delivered speeches in honor of their son.\n"You light up the sky with color," Debbie Rotstein, Brandon's mother, said. "The legacy you left was so precious and your joyous spirit will live forever."\nMarvin Rotstein, Brandon's father, said he hopes to come back from time to time and visit the tree as it grows.\nRotstein was a finance major in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs, a brother of Alpha Epsilon Pi, a member of IU Student Association, campus manager of Collegeboxes and was involved in numerous extracurricular activities and intramural sports.\n"If a tragic event like this happened to someone else, he would have been the one to organize it (the memorial)," Nedwick said.\nSenior Ross Samotny was Rotstein's fraternity brother and best friend for more than 15 years. Samotny said he keeps a picture of the two of them at his computer and often reminisces about their friendship.\n"I think the tree represents the legacy Brandon left at IU," Samotny said. "The turnout of people showed how much Brandon meant to everyone."\nThe plaque planted in the ground reads "Brandon Dann Rotstein: March 14, 1982 - March 19, 2003. His smile, love and laughter lit up the world."\nNedwick said she is sure Rotstein would be appreciative of his friends' efforts to keep his spirit alive.\n"To this day, Brandon left a huge mark on IU and on everyone he has ever come in contact with," Nedwick said. \nSenior Michael Zauberman, who met Rotstein during his freshman year, said the tree is symbolic of Rotstein's life.\n"As the tree grows, Brandon's life will continue," Zauberman said. "People who pass by will see it and as generations pass, they might not know who Brandon was, but his legacy will inevitably continue on."\n-- Contact general assignments editor Lori Geller at lfgeller@indiana.edu.