The Tisch Library rooftop was officially unveiled yesterday as Alex's Place in a dedication ceremony to celebrate the roof's completion and the life of the Tufts student whom the project honors.
Alex's Place is named for Alex Mendell, who committed suicide as a sophomore in 2003. Mendell's parents, Tom and Andrea, made the renovation possible through a donation.
"Alex's Place was a project of love for us," Tom Mendell said at the ceremony, calling yesterday a "beautiful but bittersweet day" in an emotional speech to family and friends in attendance.
The ceremony marks the completion of a yearlong project to renovate the roof, which now features three "rooms" where students and faculty can meet, a stainless-steel sundial and a trellis.
"We're together today to celebrate a very wonderful place, a very special family, and to recognize that our friend Alex has the best piece of real estate ever," Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman said at the dedication.
Though the ceremony officially unveiled the opening of the rooftop yesterday, the new space has been frequented by many students since early March and has been met with enthusiasm by student groups seeking to host special events there, Reitman said in his remarks.
The rooftop most recently played host to a celebration for the sophomore class, sponsored by the Tufts University Alumni Association and the Sophomore Class Council.
"This is sacred space at Tufts," University President Lawrence Bacow said at yesterday's ceremony. "This space is about community."
The dedication of the rooftop in honor of Mendell is particularly significant, as the student had originally conceived its renovation as a way to better use the space.
"Alex's kernel of an idea led to a dialogue ... that ultimately transformed what we thought was an unattractive and perhaps underutilized space into what we see today," Tom Mendell said.
Alex's Place serves to not only honor Mendell but to benefit the Tufts community for generations to come, said Jim Stern, the chair of Tufts' Board of Trustees and a close friend of the Mendell family.
"While a tremendous loss prompted Alex's Place, the library roof has always been a mainstay of the campus, and now it's a great work of art," Stern said.
