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The Daily Northwestern DAILYNORTHWESTERN.COM
Friday, May 1, 2015
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Community remembers Avantika Khatri By Tyler Pager
daily senior staffer @tylerpager
Photos by Sylvana Caruso/The Daily Northwestern
SHARING MEMORIES Students and family members gathered Thursday afternoon at The Rock to remember Weinberg junior Avantika Khatri. Her brother (bottom left) thanked the Northwestern community for its support following his sister’s death Monday afternoon.
Avantika Khatri wanted new students to know she was looking out for them. When she arrived at Northwestern before the start of her sophomore year, she began meeting them and taking notes on her phone, detailing important information they shared with her. That way, she could pick up the conversations the next time they met. She wanted to establish relationships with new students so they knew she was someone they could talk to whenever they had a problem. Family and friends highlighted the Weinberg junior’s selflessness and care for others at a memorial Thursday afternoon. Nearly 150 students joined Khatri’s family at The Rock to share stories and celebrate her life. Khatri, 21, died Monday afternoon in her off-campus apartment. There were no signs of foul play, and the cause of her death is still pending toxicology results, Evanston police Cmdr. Joseph Dugan said. Naresh Khatri spoke of his daughter’s idealism and passion for social justice issues. He shared some of his favorite memories with her, including their trips to see “Slumdog Millionaire” and “The Lego Movie.” A professor, he said the slogan “everything is awesome” from “The Lego Movie” is the new way he greets his students. “We need more people who are idealistic, who have the courage to do the right things,” he said. “I will carry those things with me. I am really now determined to keep her alive. I would want to do something
awesome in her memory.” Her goal to make a difference and help others should serve as lessons for the rest of the NU community, said Patricia Telles-Irvin, vice president for student affairs. “Today we thank Avantika for the legacy she has left, for the positive impact she had on her classmates, her friends and certainly the faculty,” she said. “She was indeed the consummate Wildcat, striving for excellence, being ever-curious, showing compassion, raising the spirits of her friends and wanting to make a difference in this world.” Khatri’s friends emphasized her passion for adventure and her humor, qualities they said they will miss. They described her love for attending campus speakers and athletic events and how she was always available whenever someone needed her. Weinberg junior Maroua Sallami roomed with Khatri last year in Shepard Residential College. She said they attended the Jay Sean concert on campus together two weeks ago. “She was just so happy and smiling, and she was showing me her new dance moves,” Sallami said. Sallami said she is still in shock and has yet to process Khatri’s death. Another friend recounted how Khatri taught him the importance of supporting others. Weinberg senior Daniel Cheruiyot described a time when they worked on class project together and she baked cookies for the group and gave him all the leftovers after he jokingly mentioned he didn’t know what he was going to eat for breakfast. » See KHATRI, page 11
NUDivest clarifies Residents fund Nepal relief resolution’s objectives By Tori Latham
By Shane McKeon
the daily northwestern @Shane_McKeon
Northwestern Divest held an event Thursday to remind students that its resolution only concerns divestment and to place its on-campus efforts in the context of an international effort to advocate for Palestinian human rights. The event, called “The ‘B.S’. about B.D.S.,” sought to clarify NUDivest’s relationship with the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. More than 35 people attended the event. Weinberg junior Hazim Abdullah-
Smith started the event by explaining why the campaign pursued divestment. He described a young protester who died after being run over by a Caterpillar bulldozer. “These things are very much connected to the specific corporations we targeted,” he said. “We wanted to address how they have profited over the years from this violence.” NUDivest sponsored a resolution last quarter in Associated Student Government Senate that called on the University to divest from six corporations the resolution’s authors say violate Palestinians’ » See nudivest, page 11
Serving the University and Evanston since 1881
daily senior staffer @latham_tori
Two Evanston businesses teamed up Thursday to raise money for the victims of the Nepal earthquake. Mt. Everest Restaurant, 630 Church St., and Hagerty Consulting, 1618 Orrington Ave., held a fundraiser at the restaurant to benefit both the Nepali American Center’s Nepal Earthquake Relief Fund and AmeriCares, a non-profit emergency response organization. On April 25, an estimated 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Nepal near its capital, Kathmandu. More than 5,500 people were killed and thousands
have been injured. “How could you not get involved?” said Steve Hagerty, the founder of Hagerty Consulting, a firm that helps clients prepare for and recover from disasters. “Someone just needs to step up and organize something and that makes sense for our company.” Hagerty said his company came up with the idea for the fundraiser two days before the event. The consulting firm will match 100 percent of the donations to AmeriCares collected at the door. Hagerty Consulting raised more than $15,000 for AmeriCares, with more than 200 people attending the buffet, Wendi Kromash, the firm’s marketing and communications manager, said in an email to The Daily.
Ramakant Kharel, who owns Mt. Everest, said his restaurant has long been involved in fundraising efforts, going back to when 9/11 occurred shortly after he first opened. Originally from Nepal, Kharel said he decided to give money to the Nepali American Center’s Nepal Earthquake Relief Fund because he is on the organization’s fundraising and financing team. Ten percent of all lunch sales on Thursday went to the relief fund. Kharel’s restaurant is also serving as a donation center for the Nepali American Center, and is accepting canned foods, tents, water filters and other supplies. » See nepal, page 11
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