Karson Janssen, a University of Minnesota second-year student, died Nov. 11 at the Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity house near the St. Paul campus. He was 19.
Janssen died from an unknown medical condition, his family wrote in his obituary. Janssen was found unresponsive when emergency responders arrived on the scene, but there were no signs of foul play, according to a St. Paul police spokesperson. Authorities are waiting for an autopsy result to determine Janssen’s official cause of death, according to the Pioneer Press.
Family and friends said they remember Janssen for his humor, laugh and positive outlook on life. The College of Food, Agriculture and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS) held a gathering on Nov. 18 in Coffey Hall to remember Janssen. A Facebook group called Wristbands for Karson Janssen is also distributing wristbands with his name on them in remembrance.
“We miss his laugh. We miss his smile, and his positive energy towards life in general,” said University second-year student Nicole Koziolek, one of Janssen’s close friends. “[He was] one of the best friends I could ever ask for.”
Karson Kent Janssen was born on May 1, 2002 and grew up in rural Sherburn, Minnesota. He graduated from Martin County West High School in 2020 where he was involved in Future Farms of America, 4-H, basketball and baseball, his family wrote in his obituary.
Janssen came to the University in September 2020 and was studying agricultural communications with a minor in sports management at the time of his death.
Janssen was a member of the Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity Lambda Chapter and a Land-Grant Legacy Scholar, which is a program at the University that helps support students from Greater Minnesota who are admitted to CFANS.
Koziolek was also a Land-Grant Legacy Scholar along with Janssen, and they participated in the Gopher Dairy Club together, Koziolek said. The two met each other during freshman move-in at Bailey Hall and became close friends soon after.
“[He was] having a ball, loving being at college and not having anybody breathing down our necks, and that night I really got to know him, and he ended up in my close friend group,” Koziolek said.
Janssen had a love for sports and enjoyed participating in intramurals at the University, said Kate Meyer, a University second-year student and one of Janssen’s friends.
Meyer said they bonded over their mutual love of sports. Janssen volunteered to coach her sorority’s flag football team during the fall 2021 semester.
“We talked about the Minnesota Twins a lot,” Meyer said. “We bonded over talking about the Twins all the time, and he was a huge Gophers fan.”
Now, when Janssen’s friends attend University sporting events they think of him and know he would have been there, Meyer said.
While attending the University, Janssen enjoyed going on late-night ice cream runs and teasing his friends with prank wars, Koziolek said.
Janssen and his friends participated in a friendly prank war in their dorm freshman year. In one memorable prank, people took one shoe from each of his pairs of Birkenstocks and hid them, as Janssen was known for owning several pairs of Birkenstocks, Koziolek said.
Janssen also enjoyed participating in events with his fraternity, from lip sync battles between different Greek houses to competing against other fraternities to determine the ultimate University “frachelor,” Koziolek said.
Janssen was always concerned about his friends’ wellbeing and others around him. Koziolek said Janssen would regularly ask how she was doing when she had a lot on her plate.
“He was always worried about those around him before himself,” Koziolek said.
Meyer said there are only happy memories of Janssen when she thinks about him.
“I don’t think anyone will ever have anything bad to say about him because he was the life of the party,” Meyer said. “He just always wanted people laughing.”
Janssen is survived by his parents Kent and Jolynn, sister Kennedy and two brothers Karter and Kooper.
His friends said they will remember him as someone who enjoyed having a fun time, making others laugh and took a genuine interest in people around him.
“When you come to college, you think that these are the friends you’re going to have forever, and I definitely thought that was him, and I’m sad that forever is already gone with him,” Koziolek said. “I’ve not heard one person say something bad about him, and if we can all go out like that, that’s a good way to go out.”