Remembering Tyler Madoff: Scarsdale High Students Reflect On Classmate, Grapple With Loss

Many students at Scarsdale High School have spent the past few days The teen was a member of the Class of 2014 at SHS and on the swim, crew, and football teams. He was

“Tyler was an important part of my life and I will never forget him," Scarsdale High School Junior Molly Glass said. "This week has been extremely difficult for my friends and me.”

“We have all been telling stories and sharing our memories, and dearly," the classmate told Patch. "When I think of Tyler, I think about how easy he was to talk to. Tyler was trustworthy and always knew the right thing to say. We would talk on the phone for hours. We all feel blessed to have known Tyler and for him to have been such a significant part of our lives. I send my deepest condolences to Tyler’s family.”

Scarsdale High School Alum Matthew Ginsberg met Madoff when Madoff swam on the swim team his freshman year.

“Any time we needed to swim an event he always had the teams back and would do what was needed to be done,” recalled Ginsberg.

Madoff was not part of the swim team his sophomore year because he became involved with crew, but he and Ginsberg became close again halfway through this year.

They often joked around and Madoff “would never really get upset; he would be able to play it off and not let it get to him. He was a very funny kid and if anything bothered him he would run with it and make it a joke,” Ginsberg said.

Ginsberg is also Madoff’s 4-year-old sister Michaela’s summer swim coach.

“I see a lot of Micheala in Tyler," the SHS grad said. "They are both fun loving kids, hardworking, they don’t complain, and they do what needs to be done."

“Tyler would come sometimes when his sister was swimming and he would tell me about his upcoming trip. I would tell him how jealous (I was) about the trip and I said before I went off to college we had to hang out. There are a couple kids who were younger than me that I singled out and said I want to meet up with them before I left and Tyler was one of them. While Tyler was away on the trip I would talk to his sister and ask how he was doing, and then on July 5 she wasn’t there and I found out the news.”

Ginsberg remembered his friend as "tough, smart and funny...He’ll be missed and I’ll always remember him,” Ginsberg said. He also added that the swim team has decided to dedicate all of the next swim team to Madoff.  

Scarsdale High School student Eric Berman, Madoff’s friend and football teammate, wrote about Madoff’s character in a message to Patch that he later set as his Facebook status.

“With Tyler as my inspiration, a new life-goal of mine is to emulate this talent. When making a difficult moral decision, I will think to myself, ‘What would Tyler do?’ I will think about everything he listened to, everything he was humble about, everything he loved, and nothing he would hate, everything he gave, and nothing he would take. Tyler, thank you for being in my life and inspiring me to make myself better. Wherever you are, you will always be in my heart.”

Berman also spoke of Madoff’s humility and the impact Madoff had on him as a person.

“Regardless of Tyler’s outstanding musical, intellectual, and athletic talents, he was the type of man who remained humble as you boasted about your life achievements. Tyler was passionate about his many talents, but I believe the greatest of them all was his love for making other people happy,” he said.

Many students have expressed their condolences to the Madoff family and their love for Tyler Madoff on Madoff’s personal Facebook page.

Scarsdale High School student Eric Deutsch sent Patch a message, one he also postd on Madoff’s Facebook page, about the effect Madoff’s disappearance had on him:

“The death of Tyler caused a huge realization within me. All my life… I have had the mentality that I am basically immune to the dangers around us. Whenever something bad can happen I used to just wave it off and say, ‘That cannot happen to me, I am just a kid.’ After learning about what happened to Tyler and his eventual passing, my earlier and naive mentality was shattered. Never before have I known someone personally who was about my age perish.”

Deutsch said he now has a new appreciation for his own life.

“It makes me ask myself, ‘if it happened to Tyler, who was obviously more stronger and more fit than I am, nothing is stopping it from happening to me.’ I want everyone who reads this to live their lives to the best they can because we only live once, and we owe it to Tyler to do so.”

Scarsdale High School student Nick Allen also wrote on Madoff’s Facebook page: “It was a pleasure to know you and my condolences go out to your family. May you rest in peace.”

He told Patch that he “wrote on his [Facebook] wall because I felt really bad for his family that they had to lose their son like this. I didn’t know him that well, but I knew him a little because I played football and I saw him in the weight room every now and then.”

Allen said he also suggested to the football team's quarterback that they put a sticker with his number on the back of their helmets, like the most football teams do when a member of their team passes.

Other students are still trying to cope with Madoff’s disappearance.

Scarsdale High school student Julia Paranyuk is  “unable to process the fact that he is gone,” she said.

“Every time I think about him, I think of all of the memories we made back in 8th grade. He was such a great friend, and an amazing person…. He will not be forgotten. We all love him and he will always have a place in my heart.”

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