A Celebration of Life at Vanderbilt University Honors Former Student

While attending Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, Liam Cronin studied human and organizational development with a focus on leadership and organizational effectiveness. A 2016 graduate of Vanderbilt, Liam Cronin spent time as a corporate sponsorship chairman of a benefit that was the school’s largest single-chapter philanthropic fundraiser.

Marcus Kyle Craig was a student at Vanderbilt University and had finished the spring semester of his junior year after studying abroad in Barcelona, Spain. In May 2010, Craig took his own life. To honor him, the brothers of Beta Theta Pi brought State Radio, a rock band, to play a concert in April 2011 at the university’s Alumni Lawn. Named "A Celebration of Life," this event raised more than $25,000 for Minding Your Mind (MYM), an organization aimed at helping adolescents deal with mental health issues.

As a result, the benefit became an annual spring fundraiser at the university that has raised more than $100,000 for MYM. On April 20, 2016, students hosted the sixth annual event at Centennial Park. Featured at the three-hour gathering were live music, food, and a silent auction. Items up for bid included a signed university team basketball, a signed bat by the university’s national championship baseball team, and an autographed NCAA national championship jersey.