Mark Sands (21), a UCD Computer Science student and a friend of mine, was on an exchange in UT Austin, Texas, when he suffered fatal injuries following a road collision. The incident occurred in the early hours of Friday 1st February. Mark was riding a Lime scooter when he collided with an Uber vehicle. Unfortunately, he passed away on Saturday 2nd February after undergoing emergency brain surgery.
Mark passed away surrounded by his family and is survived by countless friends and family. As a member of the Fall 18’ class of the Texas Iron Spikes, Spikes member Kyle Meche set up a GoFundMe page to help fund the family’s medical expenses, which has since reached over $35,000.
Mark, originally from Blackrock, Co. Louth, was in his third year of Computer Science at UCD and was involved in the committee of UCD NetSoc. To all who knew him, Mark was indeed a very special guy. He is survived by his parents Ruth and Paddy, and his sisters Laura and Aoife, a UCD graduate. Mark attended Dundalk Grammar School, graduating in 2016.
Although his life may have been cut short, he certainly made a remarkably positive effect on those around him. As a good friend of mine growing up, and to many others in the UCD community, he will be dearly missed and undoubtedly remembered for his unmistakable charm, positivity and warmth. Mark’s funeral is due to happen in this week, details to be posted on rip.ie. The Tribune would like to offer our condolences to the family and friends of Mark.
By Conor Capplis – Features Editor
