LEWISTON — A Bates College student who volunteered to mentor Lewiston elementary students was found unresponsive Sunday morning, and later pronounced dead, a college spokesman said Monday.
Bates senior James Jhun was found unresponsive in his dorm room Sunday morning and transported by emergency personnel to St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center where he was later pronounced dead.
The cause of death is not yet known.
Lewiston Police Department Lt. Mark Cornelio said police were called to the dorm, but Jhun had already been transported to the hospital. “We understand he has a history of prior medical conditions,” Cornelio said. “The Medical Examiner will be conducting an autopsy sometime this week.”
Bates spokesman Kent Fischer said the tragic death “is a terrible loss for his family and the entire Bates community. We are working hard to provide support to his family and friends at this difficult time. We are profoundly sad and share the tremendous grief of his family.”
According to Jhun’s LinkedIn page, he held a dual citizenship in the United States and South Korea.
He was born and raised in the Boston area, but lived and traveled in California and South Korea.
He would have graduated in May. He was pursuing a degree in environmental studies and health, and a minor in music.
Music was a big part of his life. Jhun played five instruments, was a former member of the Boston Symphony Youth Orchestra and a member of Bates College a capella group. He led rehearsals and performed several times a month.
Kristen Gilley, program manager of Community Concepts’ Big Brothers Big Sisters, said Jhun volunteered to help Lewiston elementary students.
“We are deeply saddened by the news of his passing,” she said Monday. “James believed in the power of mentoring and worked hard to ensure that future Bates students would be afforded the opportunity to make an impact. He was dedicated to the Bates Buddies program, and supported Big Brothers Big Sisters in a joint effort to serve more schools in Lewiston.”
In 2014, Jhun re-established Bates Buddies, a community outreach program where college students mentored to children at recess and after school. He recruited other Bates students to mentor and led weekly after-school board games, securing grants for materials.
His LinkedIn profile gave a sense of Jhun’s talents and interests.
In July and August, Khun said he worked with public health scientists analyzing water samples in Busan, Korea. In the summer of 2013 he worked in Los Angeles studying molecular biology techniques, gene cloning and cell culture. In 2011, he taught English and Korean to Senegalese students as part of the Korea International Cooperation Agency.
Jhun wrote that he was eager to contribute to society by working to help the environment and public health.
“My family has always called me a ‘walking encyclopedia.’ In other words, I know a little bit about a lot of things. And this inclination for trivial and random facts has only expanded during my time at Bates, as I have learned to be able to think in many ways about many topics,” he wrote.
The environment and public health are complex issues, he said. “I am equipped with a diverse set of skills and knowledge to take on the world.”
As Bates observed Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday morning, keynote speaker William Jelani Cobb opened his remarks by offering condolences to Bates College students and faculty.
“Let me start by sending my sympathies to your community,” Cobb said. “I recognize you’re all in mourning over the loss of a student here.”
bwashuk@sunjournal.com
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