'There is a huge hole in my heart:' Elon community mourns Breslin Wiley
They all knew why they were there. But that didn't make the task any easier.
Elon University Jan Fuller said their mission aloud. She said it with a somber voice. She said it with a caring look on her face. But the tears still fell from the people there.
And she said that was okay.
"We're here to be together in our loss," Fuller said. "We need to support each other in this moment."
The Elon community gathered in Numen Lumen Pavilion Sunday night to mourn the death of Breslin Wiley, the 21-year-old junior who died unexpectedly Saturday. Every seat in the sacred space was filled. People had to line the walls and doorways to make room.
Town of Elon Police were called to Wiley's home at 216 E. Foster Drive, shortly after noon Saturday, where he was found. According to the Town of Elon Police Department, Wiley's death was "unexpected." It is being investigated as an "incident of self harm." He leaves behind his parents — Mike and Georgia — and his brother, Kalin.
Wiley's Funeral will be Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. at Sts. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral, 30 Malvern Ave. Richmond Va 23221
They chuckled at his music tastes, the way he blasted the rapper Gucci Mane's songs through a portable speaker. They laughed at his antics when he woke up a neighbor in his Danieley pod last year to make him go party.
And they remembered how he spent his last night alive at the Epsilon Delta chapter of Delta Delta Delta Sorority's formal, where he jokingly combed a girl's hair with a fork. One student said she held his phone for a period of the night. Seeing the notifications on his phone was a reminder to her of how many people wanted to be with him .
But the majority of the evening was silent. At times, the only audible noises were the sniffles of those who loved him and the sirens of a fire truck outside. Tissue boxes were scattered throughout the room, most empty by the end.
Wiley majored in engineering physics. Junior Bridgette Harrell met Wiley last year, and connected again the first day of class this year. On that day, Harrell ran into Wiley while she walked to McMichael, and he offered to help her with her physics course homework.
On Saturday, Harrell heard of his death when she saw two of her coworkers read the email Jon Dooley, vice president for student life, sent to the Elon community. She said she "lost it." One of her friends was gone.
And she can’t get him back.
"It's just a huge hole in my heart because he was a happy-go-lucky person," Harrell said. "I think I can speak for a lot of people when I say that it's a shock. I don't know what the timeline is in the recovery because it was such a traumatic event. Right now … I want to focus on the good memories."
