–Written by Edmund Chung, Royce Conner, Ankur Doshi, Jared Gross, Steven Yeh, and and Marla Zucker

I'm speaking on behalf of the group of friends that have known and loved Costa since our freshman year at Brown. We wanted to use this opportunity to give everyone else here a flavor of WHY we loved Costa so much. And, I'm not allowed to cry until I finish this.

Last night, we collected out thoughts about Costa. There are so many memories. However, we decided to start with a passage from one of Costa's favorite poems. For those of you who knew about Costa's tastes, you know that poetry is not one of them. So this passage is actually from something more his speed -- a rap song by LL Cool J.

I'm the pinnacle,
that means I reign supreme.
I'm notorious,
I'll crush you like a jelly bean.

We all remember Costa reciting these phrases on many, many occasions. Of course, it displays his humor. It also shows other aspects of his personality -- his determination and his confidence -- that made him who we loved. Throughout our Brown experience, we learned much about Costa. Most notably, he was a model for us as he always had his priorities straight. For example, to those that didn't know him, it may have seemed that his responsibilities to UFS (Univ. Food Services) came first. Many people at Brown, and us especially, remember him in his UFS hat and apron running a snack bar called the Ivy Room with efficiency that bordered on being dictatorial. I personally remember when Costa first introduced "fruit smoothies" to the Brown campus. We were all VERY skeptical at first. Who would want something like that, we asked?  But, of course, like everything else Costa did, it turned to gold. The smoothies ended up being a hit and, as far as I know, they're still a hit today. To those who knew Costa casually, it seemed that after UFS came his school work, as an Econ. major, and his various positions at the Buxton International House. Costa never had us worried about his academics. He threw himself into his studies and things were always well in hand. This, surprisingly, always made it seem like he had more time, not less. He had time, for instance, to plan international house parties. Costa was especially proud of the dances during which you could always find him dancing on the catwalk. He worked hard to include everyone.

Although it seems there was so much to Costa, this didn't even scratch the surface. WE DIDN'T KNOW COSTA CASUALLY. We saw him every day for 4 years-- most often due to his impetus, not ours. We know that while he threw 100% into these other things, none of these were his focus. Nothing held more attention in Costa's mind that his friends and family. We were the most important things to him. He was omnipresent with us. He introduced his younger sister to us and often jokingly told us to watch over her. I, for one, took this mandate seriously as Evy became all of ours little sister. No matter how busy Costa got, he NEVER missed a moment of spending time with us. Some of us remember playing foozball; some of us remember playing pool. These diversions with friends went on for hours on end. Then, we'd all pile into his car (the Indigo -- the name of the car and Costa's legendary driving are a story for another time. If you are curious stop one of us and we'd be happy to go into the details with you.) for a hair-raising midnight run to Taco Bell or Foxwoods. Of course, at Foxwoods, Costa always won using his unique betting style that appalled onlookers. Back at Brown, he NEVER missed a volleyball or hockey game, no matter if his back, knees, or hands hurt. He didn't EVER let down his team or his friends.

He NEVER missed a trip with his friends. Whether it was driving down to Newport or a 1am departure for a 5 hour drive to Bloomsburg, PA, he never let us down. Admittedly, though, Steve still has nightmares of Costa driving in both lanes of the highway at night, dodging deer, just to "maximize his options." All of this is amazing enough, but what made Costa unique amongst even best friends was that he was never in a bad mood. He never got angry or frustrated. He always had something to say that lifted the mood, even if it required that we all laugh at him. In the end, though, we always laughed together. Nothing got Costa down for long. More than just being another determined person at Brown, Costa was also dedicated -- his essence was that word. Costa was dedicated to his work, to school, and to his friends at family. Of course, he would say that he was also dedicated to, quote, "maximizing his utility."

This dedication took Costa home to Greece after graduating from Brown. He wanted to fulfill his responsibility in the Army. Although he was the furthest away of us all -- literally thousands of miles away, on another continent -- Costa was the ONE who kept us all together via e-mail.  He entertained us with his stories of his military exploits along with the 32 mysterious penalty days he accumulated in officer training. We never did hear why he got all of those -- but we can only imagine it was something good.

Then, you can imagine our surprise and excitement when Costa e-mailed us from the US, not Greece, several months before his 2 year commission was up. Costa told us in that e-mail, I quote, "With the good, you take the bad." That was how Costa told us of his condition. In true Costa form, even after telling is this, Costa was much more concerned about us them himself. He said, I quote, "I don't want you guys to worry to much or freak out or anything." His attitude in the next months astounded and amazed us all. He was able to convince us that his illness was just another small obstacle to conquer another "bump in the road." He was confident in his chances and determined and dedicated to winning. Amazingly, he maintained his positive outlook on life, his trademarked sense of humor, and his life goals, throughout his illness. He kept up at school and always seemed strong when he saw him. In fact, we heard the story of how one day after finishing his chemotherapy, he rented a car, drove to Brown, and danced the night away at the Greek festival, celebrating life. He was always upfront to us about his illness, but always positive as well. He kept us all laughing with his humerous accounts of his surgeries and procedures. Only Costa could tell a FUNNY story about having surgery while awake and driving the surgeons crazy with his banter.

One day Costa e-mailed us that, quote, "on the brighter side, I am now permanently off the dating market."  He had just met Susan and could tell, even after just one date, a lunch, that he never needed to meet anybody else. He found what he was looking for. This August, we were all surprised to find Costa back in the hospital in Boston. On a day's notice from Evy, we all found out that this time it was serious and made arrangements to be in Boston. By the next morning, Costa has once again brought together his friends. This time, though, it was just to say good-bye.

Costa, our brother, we miss you, we remember you, and we love you.

OTHER QUOTES THAT REMIND US OF COSTA

God will hold us accountable for all the joys of life that we do not partake in.

–Talmud

And let your best be for your friend
If he must know the ebb of your tide,
let him know its flood also.
For what is your friend that you should
seek him with hours to kill?
Seek him always with hours to live.
For it is his to fill your need,
but not your emptiness.
And in the sweetness of friendship let
there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures.
For in the dew of little things the heart
finds its morning and is refreshed.
 

Kahlil Gibran, 1923