Over the summer, the Hamline community suffered a major loss with the passing of longtime janitor Solomon Hagos. Hamline students, faculty and staff alike loved Hagos for his kindness, humor and dedication to Hamline and the community he served. It is clear how his impact goes much further than simply being a fantastic janitor who cared for the spaces he worked in.
Hagos was born in Eritrea, a country in East Africa, on Jan. 5, 1964. He moved to America in 1990 to pursue a journey in higher education. Throughout his life, he was known for his passion and dedication to helping others, along with time spent supporting Ethiopian and Eritrean communities.
However, one of his biggest highlights was the time he spent working at Hamline. Hagos joined the community twenty years ago as a janitor, first working for Hamline directly, then working under ABM, the former, and Marsden, the current janitorial company. During his time on the campus, he was a staple in many buildings. He previously worked in main buildings on campus, such as the Anderson Center, and worked at the Hamline Apartments and Manor Hall for the past year or so.
On Oct. 2, the community was able to host a time of remembrance in the Blue Garden which included opening statements by University Chaplain Reverend Dr. Kelly Figueroa-Ray, poetry read and written by Hagos’ beloved friend, Melanie Fox and stories shared about his life from various Hamline students, staff and faculty.
Hagos was known for the care he held toward the students he worked alongside. According to the Director of Media Services and Class of ‘87 Brian Johnson, Hagos loved gossip, hence one of the many reasons he thrived while working in the residence halls.
“The more he got to know you, the more he wanted to interact with you and the more you wanted to interact with him. And like I said, he was always very, very open and good-natured. If you gave him a hard time, he loved it,” Johnson said.
However, one alumnus who worked closely with both Johnson and Hagos recalls how memorable the two made her Hamline experience. Deanna, a recent Hamline alumni, worked with Conference & Event Management and spent many hours working alongside Hagos and Johnson to prepare for a variety of events across campus.
“Oh no…. Thank you for letting me know. He will be missed. Some of my best memories from Hamline and college [was] working with you two and the events team.” Deanna said in an email to Johnson after he broke the news of Hago’s passing.
His kindness extended beyond just the students, but to the coworkers, fellow staff and faculty of Hamline. No matter who someone was, Hagos went above and beyond to greet them and wish them the best. No matter what was going on in his life, Hagos made sure to be a positive role model here at Hamline and make sure his happiness was palpable.
“He was very humble, kind always, no matter what personal life [happenings] was going on with him. He would never miss saying hi and asking how my day was going and wishing us the best,” Associate Director of the Wesley Center Nur Mood said.
Mood and Hagos had the unique opportunity to bond over both being from East Africa, a fact Mood was only able to learn later on in their unique friendship. Despite Hagos being from Eritrea and Mood from Somalia, that did not stop them from forming this beautiful bond over their East African roots.
However, as Hagos moved to work in residence halls rather than the Anderson Center, Mood was able to see him less and less. Yet, Mood was lucky enough to have one last conversation with him before his passing. They crossed paths in West Hall by the Food Resource Center (FRC) and began to strike up a conversation about how their lives had been during their times apart.
“He grabbed stuff and wished me the best for the day. And the sad part is because I wish I knew that was the last conversation I was going to have with me. And I didn’t know. No one knows exactly when the time is going to come, but I didn’t know that Wednesday, that day at the FRC was going to be the last time I was interacting with him, the last time I was chatting with him,” Mood said.
Mood recalled the end of the conversation, their simple chat made all the more impactful due to the timing and wished that he was able to talk with him more. The loss of such an influential person on campus, one that everybody knew, impacted everyone differently. For Mood, this is yearning for what could have been said and what he will miss.
“I wish I could have shaken his hand. I wish I could have been more deep, I wish I could have listened more. I wish you know, how he wished me the best, I wish I could wish him for better,” Mood said.
Not only did Hagos have such a grand impact on staff and faculty at Hamline, but he was beloved by his managers and colleagues. Custodial Services Operations Manager Blake Skaja was one of many of Hagos’ managers over his twenty years at Hamline. As a manager, there are things Skaja is unable to see. He was only able to see a glimpse of Hagos’ impact, but thanks to the remembrance, he was able to learn more about him.
“I can’t remember the young students’ names, but they got up and spoke and it was so cool because as a manager, I don’t get to see that. And they got up and spoke, and they started crying and said that he was their East African Uncle that they never had,” Skaja said.
Hagos had also been incredibly influential during his first few months here at Hamline. Due to his experience and his impressive knowledge of the campus, he was a beneficial resource for Skaja.
“They all knew him. He knew every little aspect of the campus. When I first started, he would explain where certain things were, who to talk to, and he really had a pulse on what’s going on with the students, with events, and he was definitely a great leader in that aspect,” Skaja said.
Alongside Skaja, his impact on his colleagues was also palpable. He was practically another union representative for them, as he went out of his way to make sure everyone’s voices were heard and that they were well respected.
“He really wanted to make sure that everybody got treated fairly, and he wanted to make sure that everyone had a say. So that’s another thing I really respected about him, is he did care for everyone, not just the students and faculty, but also employees that he worked with,” Skaja said.