Some thoughts on the passing of Austin Karns

(This post was originally published Thursday night in my column for the Turner Report Newsletter.)

Every former teacher (and many who are still teaching) has had this experience.

A former student approaches you at the grocery store or at the mall and while the student may look familiar, you can't place the name.

I usually try to avoid using the name, though sometimes the student will say something like "I bet you don't remember me," which ruins any subterfuge I might have planned.

I don't know why it works this way, but when I am able to somehow avoid using the name, immediately after the student leaves, my goes into overdrive and I immediately remember the name and not just the name.

I can always picture the student's face, where he or she sat in the classroom and occasionally who sat in the surrounding chairs, something the student said and often, since I taught a writing class, I can remember something from one of the student's papers.

I learned this morning while reading a Facebook post that my former South Middle School student Austin Karns was missing. If I had seen Austin recently, I probably wouldn't have recognized him. Twenty years have passed since he was one of the top students in my communication arts class in Room 210.

The article said Austin's car had been abandoned. Austin's body was found during the subsequent search.

My memories of Austin were of a young man barely into his teens who had his whole life ahead of him.
It was a life that ended much too soon.