Two College Station, Texas, residents die in Maryland plane crash
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Two College Station, Texas, residents die in Maryland plane crash
Monday, December 11, 2006
By GREG OKUHARA
Eagle Staff Writer
Friends and co-workers of two College Station residents killed in an airplane crash over the weekend in Maryland said they will remember the pair as kind people who took pride in helping others.
Pilot Timothy Alexander Kramer and his passenger, Deborah Frisch Giant, died when Kramer's single-engine plane crashed after clipping trees as it approached a runway, Maryland State Police officials said Sunday afternoon.
Kramer was a civil engineering professor at Texas A&M University, and Giant worked as a collections manager for State Bank in Bryan.
Sanjay Tewari, a civil engineering graduate student studying under Kramer, said he first learned about the crash in a newspaper report and feared the worst because he knew Kramer was supposed to fly to the east coast over the weekend. "The way he talked about it and the experience he had flying ... I'm having trouble absorbing the news," Tewari said.
Maryland Trooper James Wilcox said it wasn't yet clear why the plane had problems landing at Lee Airport, a small, private facility in Edgewater, Md., near Annapolis.
Wilcox said conditions were clear when the accident happened at about 5:45 p.m. Saturday.
"It appears both people died as a result of the impact," he said.
While the investigation surrounding the crash continued, friends in College Station said they were trying to cope with the loss.
Jenna Kurten met Giant about 1 1/2 years ago through the College Station Toastmasters Club.
She said Giant and Kramer were on their way to New York City for a short vacation.
It would have been Giant's first trip to the Big Apple.
"I felt that Deborah, even though she was 50, was learning how to really enjoy life and be spontaneous," Kurten said. "She was just thrilled to be going [to New York City]."
Tewari, who studied under Kramer for the past three years, said he built a close bond with the professor as a friend.
He said Kramer often would host get-togethers for graduate students at his house, which was adorned with photos and models of airplanes.
"I'm going to miss him as a friend and a mentor," Tewari said, fighting back tears. "He was like that for many students. This is a big loss for me as a person."
One of the gratifying aspects of their relationship was that their conversations didn't always involve school-related topics, Tewari said.
The 30-year-old said Kramer made it a habit to ask how his wife was doing and how life was going outside the university.
"He had a jolly nature," Tewari said. "He helped any student whenever he could. Every time I needed help, I could always walk into his office and he was always there."
Kurten said she's still trying to come to terms with the news of her friend's death.
"I would say Deborah was the kind of person who makes the most out of life. She was somebody who devoted herself to helping others. She was loved by those around her. I'll certainly miss her."
• Greg Okuhara's e-mail address is greg.okuhara@theeagle.com.
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