The spring semester started with a feeling of great sadness.
Brendan Santo went missing last October, during Halloween weekend. After his friends and family members were unable to reach him, a missing person’s report was filed. The search for Brendan ‘officially’ began in the first week of November 2021.
Ever since Santo went missing, Samuel Stanley (MSU’s president) sent out recurrent emails informing students about updates and where we could turn for resources and information.
On January 21st we witnessed the devastating discovery of Mr. Brendan Santo’s body found in Red Cedar River. Since Mr. Santo’s body was just recovered, and an official autopsy is yet to be completed, we can only speculate Mr. Santo’s cause of death at this point.
We as a community should reflect upon this tragedy and remind ourselves to act on the principles of unity and support. I say this because amidst navigating social distancing, a new semester, and this new development, we need to be supportive of one another during these trying times.
During this time, students should become aware of the mental and counseling facilities that are made available for students throughout campus.
We can only send our deepest condolences to the Santo family.
As a community, we’ll continue to show support during Brendan’s investigation and we can only hope that the police will find the cause of death soon.
It is important to note that even though Mr. Santo wasn’t officially a member of the Michigan State community, he is still a fellow student and peer. This alone shows why we should extend our support and attentive reach to go beyond East Lansing. This way we can properly help and reflect on what Michigan – as a whole – is going through.