Sad news. It seems this man touched many people’s lives.

Susan Svrluga of the Washington Post reports.

From the projects to college dean, Amtrak victim was ‘inspirational,’ ‘extraordinary’

Derrick Griffith used to wander around the housing projects in New York, where he worked for a nonprofit, calling to kids by name, teasing them, bringing them into the fold, talking to them about sticking with school. He had a way about him, a charisma and a sincerity, that easily earned him friends, said Kathy Gordon, who worked closely with him for years.

His own story — having grown up in those same projects, a bright kid who found his way out of extreme poverty to education and a career he was passionate about — helped him bridge any skepticism.

“He had a very special way of connecting with young people, and encouraging them, and helping them get back on track,” she said, after fighting back tears. “He was really inspirational.”

Griffith was killed in the Amtrak train that derailed Tuesday night in Philadelphia, one of the eight who died in a crash that injured more than 200 people.

Griffith was dean of student affairs and enrollment management at City University of New York’s Medgar Evers College, a role that had him tenaciously advocating for students, especially black men, fighting to keep them in college, said the school’s president, Rudolph Crew.

It hadn’t been easy to get there. And that, perhaps, helped him see how best to help others succeed.

“He was extraordinary,” Crew said of the 42-year-old dean. Griffith didn’t seem to get discouraged; he brought an easy sense of humor and a comedian’s timing to lighten up even the most difficult situations. He helped students through some extremely tight spots, like the single mom who didn’t have a home or enough money for food last fall.