Let us not forget Russian American,
Alina Sheykhet every year on July 7 and October 8. We will not forget the way
you live on this earth.
 |
|
Alina Sheykhet
(July 7, 1997 to October
8, 2018)
|
Alina Sheykhet
remembered by friends as kind and loving
October 15, 2017
In a seventh grade stage production of “Thoroughly
Modern Millie,” Isabel Scrabis’ grandfather mistook Alina Sheykhet — who
starred as Millie — for his granddaughter.
“The whole entire time he thought I was Alina, and
he was so impressed. My mom had to break it to him that I was just swaying in
the background,” Scrabis said. “I told [Alina] that [story] whenever we became
friends a few years later and she thought it was hilarious.”
Scrabis — one of Sheykhet’s best friends — said the
two were essentially the “same person.”
“We would show up to school sometimes wearing the
same thing,” Scrabis said, laughing. “We loved to go shopping.”
Scrabis and other close friends said they’ve been
recalling fond memories of Sheykhet since Sunday, Oct. 8, when she was found
dead in her home on Cable Place. Matthew Darby, Sheykhet’s ex-boyfriend whom
she filed a protection-from-abuse order against, was charged with homicide
Tuesday and arrested Wednesday in South Carolina.
 |
| Alina
Sheykhet loved animals and joined the Animal Lovers Club at Pitt. (Photo
courtesy of Isabel Scrabis) |
Sheykhet, a Pitt junior aspiring to become a
physical therapist, loved to sing and dance, her friends said. Scrabis — who met
Sheykhet in middle school but became friends with her in their junior year at
nearby Montour High School — said they took a number of chorus classes together
and were in musicals together.
“She was so incredibly talented, had
the most beautiful voice,” Scrabis
said. “Anytime one of us would start singing the
other one would join in.”
When Sheykhet broke her knee freshman year of high
school, she was no longer able to pursue dancing to the extent she had
previously. But Zach Brandner, her roommate and a current sophomore
broadcasting media major at Point Park, said this accident helped inspire her
path of study — physical therapy.
“In a way, her knee breaking ended one career but
it started a new,” Brandner said.
 |
| Alina Sheykhet with
her friend Isabel Scrabis. (Photo courtesy of Isabel Scrabis) |
Sheykhet began her college career at Pitt
Greensburg, where she met Brandner. Brandner and Sheykhet studied at the
Greensburg campus for two years before moving into the same house this year on
Cable Place in Oakland. Sheykhet began taking classes at Pitt’s main campus,
and Brandner transferred to Point Park to pursue a major not offered a Pitt.
Despite their busy schedules, Brandner and Sheykhet always managed to spend
time together.
“Every minute of my life — well I don’t want to say
every minute of my life — but so much of my life was spent with her,” Brandner
said. “Every day of my life since we moved into the house that we were in in
August, every day we hung out.”
At Pitt Greensburg, Brandner and
Sheykhet were both part of the Outdoor Adventure and Community Service club — a
club that offered both outdoor excursions, such as rock climbing, and service opportunities,
such as volunteering at food pantries. Sheykhet served as the vice president of
the club during her last year at the Greensburg campus.
Sheykhet was already beginning to get
involved in the Pitt main campus community after transferring this year. She
got a job working at the front desk at the Hilton Garden Inn on McKee Place,
Scrabis said, and she joined the Animal Lovers Club at Pitt.
“Alina loved animals,” Scrabis said. “She was
[recently] saying she was excited to go horseback riding.”
Paige O’Neil, a junior pharmacy major at Duquesne,
became friends with Sheykhet in high school after taking a “college in high
school” chemistry course together through Pitt. O’Neil said Sheykhet was
extremely excited to move to main campus this year.
“She was like ‘Paige, we get to be together all the
time! We’re going to have parties, you’re going to be over at my house every
weekend! I get the big master bedroom — we’re going to hang out all the time!”
O’Neil said.
Sheykhet’s friends all agreed she was
funny, kind, loving and always had a smile on her face. Even after three years
of friendship, Brandner said he and Sheykhet never fought.
“We used to joke all the time, I said, ‘Alina,
we’ve been friends for three years and we haven’t had our first fight yet.
Like, do you think we’re ever going to have a first fight?’ And she was like
‘no.’”
Brandner said he wants people to know that Sheykhet
was more than what happened to her. He said it’s important that people focus on
the good things about her and less on the person who ended her life.
“I love her so much,” Brandner said. “It was just a
pleasure and an honor having her as my best friend.”
Editor’s note: Isabel Scrabis
works for The Pitt News as an account executive.
Pitt student murder: 5 things to know
about Alina Sheykhet
Updated: Oct 9, 2017 - 4:57 PM
PITTSBURGH -
The murder of 20-year-old Pitt student Alina Sheykhet has shocked the
community and those who knew her.
Since her death, we have
learned more about her life.
Here are
five things we’ve learned about Alina Sheykhet:
1.
Alina Sheykhet was originally from Russia. Her brother, Artem Sheykhet, said
their family moved here when she was 4 years old.
2.
Alina was a graduate of Montour High School.
3. Her
family has described her as "a beautiful and smart girl with a bright
future." She was going to school at Pitt to become a physical
therapist.
4. While
attending school in Oakland, Channel 11 learned she was working at the front
desk at the Marriott in Oakland.
5.
Channel 11 learned that Alina recently became an aunt. Her brother and his
wife just had their first child.
Courtney
Brennan is working this story and will have any new developments on Channel 11
News, starting at 5 p.m.
Police
continue to investigate leads into her death. Police said Monday they do
not believe it was a random act of violence.
The medical
examiner said she died of sharp/blunt force trauma. Her death was ruled a
homicide.
 |
|
Alina Sheykhet
(July 7, 1997 to October
8, 2018)
|
OTHER LINKS:
Death Penalty To Be Sought For Suspect
In Pitt Student’s Murder
February 15, 2018 at 2:18 pm
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — The Allegheny County district
attorney plans to pursue the death penalty against a man accused of murdering
his ex-girlfriend.
VICTIM: Alina Sheykhet (7/7/1997 TO
10/8/2017)
RELATED:
