Student's death is mourned by friends, Greek community

Wharton junior Yash Kasbekar, who died in a car accident over winter break, was remembered by his friends as a dedicated worker with a positive attitude and a warm smile.

Kasbekar was killed outside of Chicago, Ill. on New Year's Day.

Kasbekar and his friends had taken a brief trip to a lake house in Wisconsin for New Year's. On the drive home to Illinois, an approaching car reportedly swerved and hit the car head on. Kasbekar, who was in the passenger seat, was killed instantly.

Kasbekar, who transferred from Emory his sophomore year, came to Penn without knowing a single person on campus.

"He came here not knowing anyone, but everyone took a liking to him," College junior Anthony Prousi said. "He was a great guy, a lot of fun to hang around with."

Kasbekar applied to Wharton after completing an elaborate business plan for a web-based company. The company, DNrealtors.com, is a marketplace for the buying and selling of internet domains. Kasbekar had recently sold the site.

Kasbekar was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, and was recently elected Executive Vice President of the Interfraternity Council.

"He was a great brother, a lot of fun," outgoing SAE President and College junior Paul Babb said. "He was outgoing, extroverted, a wonderful guy, always had a smile on his face, never had a bad thing to say about anyone."

Kasbekar's passing leaves an void in the IFC, which is facing the most important and busiest two weeks of the year with the onset of fraternity rush.

"Yash, if he was here, would say, 'You have very important things to do,' because he believed in the potential that we have to really fix what's going wrong with the IFC and for him to see that we were slowing down or having no direction after his passing, he would say, 'That's ridiculous,'" IFC President and College junior Conor Daly said.

"Yash would have wanted us to do the rush, to do it well and to do all the things that he was working for," he added.

Aside from his work ethic, his friends best remember Kasbekar for his sociable personality and his enthusiasm.

"He was the type of guy who pretty much lit up the room anywhere he went," Prousi said. "He always had something positive to say. He was an inspiration to a lot of people."

Many of Kasbekar's friends say he was loved by all and was a positive influence on all those whose paths he crossed.

"He was just so full of life, he was a very vibrant kid, he always had a smile on his face," said Wharton sophomore Parag Vaidya, an SAE brother. "He gained a lot of people's respect in this community."

"It sounds trite, but this is a kid that everyone loved," Daly said. "He was always collected and he was always someone I could count on, not only for the professional stuff, but as a friend."

A memorial service for Kasbekar will take place later this week, possibly in Irvine auditorium. The date is tentatively set for Tuesday or Wednesday.

"Everyone has these good intentions, but we don't want anything that's going to be this little rinky-dink operation that doesn't do him justice," Daly said. "Let's do one [service], let's do it well and put all our energy towards that."

"My mother said it best," Daly added. "She said, 'You're too young to lose anybody,' and I said, 'You know what? You're right.'"

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