Here's what you need to know about Sean Collier, the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology campus cop who was shot to death by the
suspected Boston Marathon bombers.
When he went hiking with
the MIT Outing Club, he brought extra ear plugs for others to block out
snoring in the crowded mountain cabin.
When his car got hit by a swerving vehicle, Collier immediately went to check if the other driver was injured.
Even those who barely
knew him filled a tribute page set up Friday with memories of his easy
laugh and ever-present smile, his desire to help others and his
motivation to be a good police officer.
"He had a really great
smile. I'll always remember that," Kristina Lozoya, a student volunteer
with the MIT emergency medical service, told CNN. "He was always
laughing. He loved his job."
Carin King, another
volunteer with the service that runs the campus ambulance, told CNN that
Collier "went out of his way" to get to know the student emergency
medical technicians (EMTs).
"A few months ago he was
on a call with me where the patient was very seriously ill," King
related in an e-mail. "He followed up with the family and then stopped
by our bunkroom to look for me every day for a week so he could let me
know that our patient was now OK."
On Thursday night, when news emerged that an MIT officer had been shot, King sent Collier an e-mail "to make sure he was OK."
She never got an answer.
"I figured I was being overly cautious," King added. "It's truly a heartbreaking situation."
Such a connection reflected the 27-year-old Massachusetts native's approach to police work.
While his brother,
Andrew, became a machinist in the engine department at Hendrick
Motorsports, one of the major NASCAR racing teams, Sean followed a
different path.
"Sean was one of these
guys who really looked at police work as a calling," MIT Police Chief
John DiFava said in a statement posted on the university website. "He
was born to be a police officer."
Collier died a police officer, shot to death in his squad car on the MIT campus.
In a statement Friday, his family asked for privacy.
"We are heartbroken by
the loss of our wonderful and caring son and brother," the statement
said. "Our only solace is that Sean died bravely doing what he committed
his life to -- serving and protecting others."
President Barack Obama
praised Collier on Friday night following the conclusion of a daylong
manhunt for the second of two marathon bombing suspects, saying he was a
dedicated officer.
"We are grateful to him," Obama said.
Collier's killing and a subsequent carjacking nearby set off the search that paralyzed Boston.
The suspects were
identified as brothers. One died following a shootout with police while
the second was taken into custody, officials said.
After the blasts Monday
near the finish line of the iconic road race, Collier's slaying further
traumatized many in the MIT community who had gotten to know him during
his 15 months on the job.
"The loss of Officer
Collier is deeply painful to the entire MIT community," MIT President L.
Rafael Reif said on the university website.
That included the MIT
Outing Club, which organizes hiking and skiing excursions in the region.
Collier, who was single, was an avid participant in trips to the
mountains of New England that he hiked as a boy.
Club members described him as endlessly energetic and a joyous companion on the trail and around the campfire.
"We recall him bringing
earplugs for an entire cabin full of people, going out of his way to
give people rides, offering help for bike or any other problems," said a
statement on a tribute page set up at MIT.
"He made a point of
getting to know students, asking them about details of their lives,
enthusiastically sharing his own experiences. He brightened the lives of
all of us, and words cannot describe the loss we feel."
Fellow club member
Andrew Ding told of the car crash during a drive to New Hampshire,
describing how Collier showed no hint of anger or exasperation over the
damage to his vehicle.
"Sean was the first out
of our car to go check and see if the (other driver) was OK," Ding wrote
in an email to CNN, adding that "it would be exceedingly difficult to
imagine him not stepping up and doing the right thing when he had the
chance, which unfortunately he did last night."
Such awareness and
devotion were evident in college, said Kristen Kuehnle, who chairs the
department of criminal justice at Salem State University, where Collier
graduated with honors in 2009 as a criminal justice major.
Kuehnle remembered that
Collier got an 'A' in the "Women in Criminal Justice" class she taught,
recalling him as "bright" and well-rounded with a "great sense of humor
that you really need."
"When you're graduating with honors, you've demonstrated ability to be thoughtful and look at all perspectives," she said.
Describing Collier as a model candidate for police work, she said he had "the vision that we are looking for in our students."
"He always wanted to be a
police officer," Kuehnle said. "That was pretty clear, but it wasn't
like the whistles and bells and toys. It was about really wanting to
make a difference and being good at what you do."
That's the impression he left on those who knew him at MIT.
"Sean is not the
stereotypical cop who is kind of intimidating, but rather a friendly and
down-to-earth kind of guy that you would want to be friends with,"
David Hou, an MIT sophomore, told CNN.
To Ding, Collier was "the kind of guy you'd ask to watch your wallet."
Ben Artin, another EMS
volunteer, told how Collier proposed arranging a social event to help
broaden the relationship between the campus police and the emergency
service workers.
"Sean was rare in the
degree to which, while working for MIT PD, he wanted to socially engage
with the students," Artin wrote to CNN, adding that "I hope that we
follow through on this proposal as we heal."
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