On Saturday, Oct. 4, the Andrews University community was rocked by the sudden passing of Micah Harris, an undergraduate sophomore who was active in the community. Harris and several of his friends, who also attend AU, went to swim in Lake Chapin, which is about two miles away from the university campus.
A swimming emergency occurred around 4 p.m. that day, where Harris and others attempted to swim towards an old bridge pylon that is estimated to be about 100 yards from shore, according to David Zizkovsky, the South County lieutenant and Dive Team commander of the Berrien County Police Department. Initial investigations concluded that during the swim to the pylon, Harris started to struggle and began to sink. Despite efforts to pull him up and out of the water by his friends and other people who were visiting the lake on boats, Harris unfortunately sank, and his body was not discovered until after sunset that evening.
The lake is an estimated 27 feet deep, with no light passing through the water after 15 feet, according to Zizkovsky. He added that the lake current, which connects with the St. Joseph River and eventually empties into Lake Michigan, has a current that can make swimming difficult and move things underwater swiftly, which made Harris’ body harder to find. An “eerily” similar fatality occurred in 2014, where a 17-year-old drowned after attempting to swim to a Lake Chapin pylon, he said.
For these reasons, Zizkovsky states that he “highly recommends against” swimming in Lake Chapin or attempting to climb any of the pylons to jump off. “There are people out there who can make it, …but you never know how strong a swimmer someone can be, and accidents can happen out there.” Lake Chapin remains open for boating, fishing and other water sports. Swimming is heavily discouraged.
Since the day of Harris’ passing, the Andrews University community has been able to provide support in various ways for students who continue to grieve and process this terrible situation. Chaplains from the Center for Faith Engagement have been present with students, working outside of regular office hours to provide spiritual guidance and comfort to all in need. The Counseling & Testing Center (CTC) has also opened up individual and group counseling sessions for students, accompanied by Academic Live Care, which provides free 24/7 emotional and mental health services for all AU students and employees. For recommendations from CTC leaders for how to deal with your own grief or to help someone else through theirs, please visit the Student Movement Instagram.
Many students, employees and campus departments or clubs have given heartfelt tributes to the life Harris lived as his presence had a clear lasting impact on the lives of many. The funeral for Micah Harris will be held at the Centerville Seventh-day Adventist Church on Sunday, Oct. 12, in Centerville, Ohio, at 11 a.m. Andrews University offered rides for any students who would like to attend the funeral. Associate University Chaplain Simona Mills-Pitcher also shared that there are plans to have a viewing of the church’s livestream via YouTube on campus for others to congregate.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.