Nick Zolnosky, 19, died yesterday from complications with his type-one diabetes. Police found the computer science major’s body lying down on the floor of his dorm room in Sage Point 812, with a pillow tucked under his head.
His mother, who was visiting the U from their home in Wyoming, called police when she grew concerned about her son. She had talked to him throughout the week and he told her he wasn’t feeling well. Zolnosky was scheduled for a doctor’s appointment, but didn’t show up for it, according to the police report. The night before he died, his mother knocked on the door of his room, but got no reply.
The average lifespan of a type-one diabetic diagnosed early in childhood is short, around 26 years, said Captain Lynn Mitchell, whose brother died of the same condition.
L.J. Johnson, the computer service manager at the University Campus Store, where Zolnosky worked, was likely the last person to talk to him, according to Detective Jack Fermanian. Zolnosky had called him the night before and told him he wasn’t feeling well.
“I told him to drink lots of orange juice and get some rest,” Johnson said. Everyone loved him at the store, where the computer whiz was affectionately referred to as Doctor Z. Before he died, Johnson was contemplating printing up a sign to post on the employee’s wall as an inside joke on his nickname.
Now he’s sure about putting it up, in memoriam of the lost colleague: ‘The Doctor is Out’.