Brick paver honors deceased alumnus

The people pictured in the photo in front of the brick is Savvas Pantelides, Andrew's mother Gail Anderson and his step-father Richard Miller. Courtesy
Savvas Pantelides and Andrew Klausmeyer’s mother, Gail Anderson and stepfather, Richard Miller, (left to right) kneel at Klausmeyer’s brick.

Alumnus Andrew Klausmeyer passed away Jan. 17 in an automobile accident while traveling home to Golden, Colo. – but his Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternity brothers made sure his name will never fade.

Savvas Pantelides, who graduated in 2010 and currently works at the Alumni Center, decided to gather funds to inscribe Klausmeyer’s name on a brick paver. Pantelides, also a brother of SAE, started the memorial in May and completed the project in early July.

“When I was working at the Alumni Center, I found out they were doing pavers and I said to myself, ‘this is something we have to do for Klausmeyer, to leave his mark on campus’ and after that I did not give up until I had fundraised enough money,” Pantelides said.

After fundraising, Pantelides collected a total of $500 to cover costs. SAE’s Florida Alpha chapter also contributed, as well as individual SAE alumni that knew Andrew.

Although Pantelides was not in Klausmeyer’s pledge class, the two met while Pantelides was rushing.

“I first met Andrew when I was pledging in fall of 2007,” Pantelides said. “He was the reason I joined SAE. We were very close at school and when Andrew would visit his father in Baltimore for the holidays, we would always make it a point to meet up.”

One of Klausmeyer’s closest friends, Kevin Spinozza, fondly recalls his memories of Klausmeyer.

“Klausmeyer always made you proud to be a Hurricane,” he said. “He was simply the best – the best friend you could’ve ever wished for, the best fraternity brother you could ever have – he was just the best.”

Spinozza believes the brick will immortalize his memory at UM.

“[With this brick], I love that Andrew always has a place at UM. He loved the U so much,” Spinozza said.

Other than being a part of SAE, Klausmeyer was also a member of the Housing Board. He also co-founded and served as a board member for the Children’s First Society, an organization for UM pediatrics devoted to improving children’s health.

“I was determined to succeed and not give up. That is something I learned from Andrew,” Pantelides said. “What led me to start the memorial was to honor Andrew as a friend, a brother, a mentor and to keep a piece of Andrew always tied to UM’s Alumni Center.”