On Sunday, Jan. 3, four former New Trier students drowned in a tragic accident on an icy lake in Wisconsin. The four men, Christopher McQuillen (21), Lanny Patrick Sack (20), Mori Weinstein (21), and Patrick Wetzel (21), will be greatly missed by family and friends.
All four attended New Trier during their high school career, though some transferred before graduating.
A group of sixteen were at a friend’s lake house in East Troy, Wisconsin, when the four decided to take a canoe out in the night.
The next morning, the boys had not returned and there was an overturned canoe in the lake. A friend notified the authorities, and immediately the search began. All four bodies have since been found and identified.
Lanny Patrick Sack graduated from New Trier in 2013 and attended University of Kansas. Sack played baseball for New Trier and worked at The Strike Zone, a baseball training academy in Glenview. He was an outdoorsman who enjoyed hunting and fishing, and frequently gave back to the community, whether volunteering at Winnetka Bible Church Vacation School or coaching baseball to 13-16 year olds.
Mori Weinstein graduated from New Trier in 2012 and also attended University of Kansas. According to the Chicago Tribune, his friends remembered him for his “infectious smile, gentle manner and cooking.”
A lover of art, Weinstein returned to New Trier recently to dedicate a piece of his artwork to the art department. “Mori Weinstein was, beyond everything else, loyal to his friends,” said his adviser, Robert Berlin. “Whether he was skateboarding after school or creating a work of art, Mori was interested in the people who were sharing the experience with him. He avoided the negativity and tried to find the pleasure in each day.”
Glass art teacher Monique Boyd had both Weinstein and Sack in her class, and told the Chicago Tribune, “It’s such a tragic loss. It’s hard to believe that they won’t be around anymore.”
Patrick Wetzel moved to Washington D.C. his sophomore year, but remained close with his friends from Winnetka. While at New Trier, he played lacrosse and was remembered for his quick wit. Wetzel had a love for service which was ignited by a trip to Cambodia to build a school, and later went on two trips to Guatemala with Habitat for Humanity.
He was currently a senior at University of Colorado Boulder, where he enjoyed skiing and hiking in the mountains.
Christopher McQuillen also moved after his sophomore year, and previously attended Northern Illinois University. His advisor, Matt Koulentes, said of McQuillen, “During his sophomore year, he left New Trier to attend school elsewhere. However, Chris was a funny kid who was popular with my advisery.” McQuillen volunteered with disabled youths, and was described by his family as a caring and loyal young man.
According to the New Trier website, superintendent Dr. Linda Yonke said, “Each of these young men made his own mark at New Trier, connecting in widely varying ways to friends, to teachers, and to the school community.”