The mother of a University of Vermont student who died of hypothermia earlier this month wants to make sure other parents don't have to go through the same grieving experience. Dorothy Connor has created the "Connor Gage Never Walk Alone Fund" in her son's memory.
Nineteen-year-old Connor Gage died of hypothermia that was exacerbated by acute intoxication. He was walking alone on North Winooski Avenue in Burlington on a night when temperatures were below zero when he passed out.
Dorothy Connor said the main educational message of the fund is “awareness of fellow human beings.”
“If you see someone who looks like they might be in trouble, help them,” Connor told VPR. “Buddy system, stick together.”
Connor also wants to educate young people about the dangers of hypothermia, and how quickly it can set in when exposed to extreme cold.
When asked how she thinks her son would feel about this fund in his memory, Connor said: "I feel in my heart that he knows he made a mistake and he wants other people to realize it can happen to anybody — and that pushes me forward."
Listen above to Dorothy Connor’s conversation with VPR's Mitch Wertlieb about her son and the fund she's created.
