“Our Three Winners” Continue to Inspire Public Service

The impact of Deah Barakat, Yusor Abu-Salha and Razan Abu-Salha continues to live on through the people they affected and the public service they inspired.

Hundreds gathered Wednesday on the one year anniversary of their deaths to honor their lives and to share memories of the three.

Kaushal Gandhi is a third year dental student and was a classmate of Barakat.

Photo by Blake Hodge

“I want to act today and I want to ask you all to remember the lives of these three individuals and follow their example of kindness and service,” said Gandhi.

That is what the students and the community have been doing. In September, students held the Deah Day of Service in which over three hundred people participated.

The loss of Barakat and Yusor Abu-Salha was especially hard to students at the UNC School of Dentistry. Barakat was in his second year and Abu-Salha had recently been accepted. Students there have now embraced the motto of “Live Like Deah”.

“To my fellow dental students and my classmates I don’t know how to thank you all. We’ve laughed with each other, we’ve cried with each other and we’ve worked together to make sure that we keep Deah, Yusor and Razan’s legacy alive,” said Gandhi.

Before their untimely death, Barakat and Yusor Abu-Salha had been planning a trip to Turkey to provide dental care to Syrian refugees. Razan Abu-Salha had been working on an initiative to help feed the homeless in Raleigh. A fund has been established to help continue these efforts.

Gandhi also announced that a recent food drive in Barakat’s name raised over 600 pounds of food. Barakat’s generosity to share a meal did not go forgotten.

“Anytime Deah would go home he would come back with food and he would always share that food with us and it was always so tasty so we always kept asking for more,” said Gandhi.

In March, the School of Dentistry will commemorate Barakat and Abu-Salha by displaying their framed white dentist jackets said Dean Jane Weintraub.

Dr. Suzanne Barakat (R). Photo by Blake Hodge

“I remember posing for a photo with Deah wearing his white coat and his big mega-watt smile. This white coat display will be a tangible reminder of the lives that they led and the dental professionals that they aspired to be,” said Weintraub.

Dr. Suzanne Barakat, Deah’s older sister, also spoke. She remembered that in her last night with her brother he showed his usual compassion and gratitude.

“He rocks me in his arms, and he kisses my forehead, and he says, ‘I love you so much. I am so grateful for everything you have done for me.’ And it wasn’t a rare thing for him to do that and I cherished it so much because I was so lucky to have such a brother,” said Barakat.

You can donate to the “Our Three Winners Endowment” here

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