Remembering Zack Bassin
By Tara Guaimano and Alyssa Hurlbut
“One day my jersey will hang in the rafters,” Zack Bassin proclaimed in his personal Twitter bio in 201l. Today, his “jersey” will do just that—as his family, friends and the Marist community mourns his passing due to chronic rejection of a double lung transplant.
Bassin, 21, passed away on Tuesday, Aug. 1, after a lifelong battle with Cystic Fibrosis and a series of medical obstacles accompanying it.
“I had to start using oxygen all the time, and that’s when we decided I needed to have a lung transplant at some point in the near future,” Bassin said, referring to his senior year of high school, as quoted in a 2017 feature article sharing his inspiring story.
In 2015, after struggling with the complications from Cystic Fibrosis, Bassin underwent a double lung transplant. Shortly after the surgery, he was diagnosed with post-transplant lymphoma—which occurs in less than five percent of all transplant patients. He passed away as a result of his body ultimately rejecting the lungs.
Bassin was a communications major with aspirations of pursuing a career in sports marketing and interning with Professional Golfers Association (PGA) in Florida. This past semester, he worked as a public relations intern for Madison Square Garden.
“Zack was an incredible friend, a hero, and an inspiration to everyone who had the pleasure to meet him,” said Bassin’s close friend, recent Marist graduate, Dan Ketterer. “His legacy will be carried on by all those who knew him and he will be greatly missed but never forgotten.”
Services for Zack will take place on Sunday, August 6 at 9:30 AM at Temple Israel of Northern Westchester, 31 Glengary Road, Croton on Hudson, NY—as Marist will additionally be holding a Memorial Service on campus at the start of the Fall semester. Messages of condolences may be sent to Zack’s parents at: 235 Daisy Lane, Carmel, NY 10512.