Nicola Joseph Anzalone

They say a picture is worth a 1000 words and it seems like neither a picture or 10,000 words would ever properly summarize Nicola Giuseppe Anzalone. Born with multiple health problems, Nick faced adversity every day and whenever that face was pointed toward the world, it was done so with a smile. Later diagnosed with Loeys-Dietz Syndrome, Nick's connective tissue disorder may have limited him, but it did not define Nick. In fact, one could very well argue that Nick lived to spite his syndrome.

Throughout his life, Nick forged new ways to engage with people and the world around him. From hospitals to tattoo parlors, Nick walked many paths in life and affected many people in doing so. Nurses and doctors remember the kind man who "said please 14 times" while ordering his dinner, while his gaming friends recall one "hotpiercedguy." There are so many things with which to associate Nick (cats, monopoly, the Deftones) but his strength and energy are the most astounding. Nick lived with pain every day and no one would know it. Nick saw every day as an opportunity and milked it for all it was worth.

Nick once said, "I have more baggage than an airline" and perhaps what he didn't realise was that "baggage" was really life experience. And he was right, no one lived life like Nick did.