Ryan ChartrandOn July 21, 2006, Cal Poly student Spencer Wood attended a 311 concert in Avila Beach. The following day he was found dead in a shallow drainage wash-off of Avila Beach Road. According to the coroner’s report, Wood suffered a hematoma from a fractured skull.
A year and a half later, Woods’ fraternity Lambda Chi Alpha will host a benefit concert in his memory on Saturday night.
Wood was a history and political science double major and vice president of Lambda Chi Alpha. Originally from Newport Beach, he was an avid surfer and skimboarder.
Sameer Pangrekar, an electrical engineering senior and Wood’s fraternity brother and close friend, is organizing the event.
“Spencer, to me, was a person that was always looking at the brighter side,” Pangrekar said.
“He was always happy, really loved music and the beach and loved to be with his friends. I always felt better when I was around him.”
Cal Poly band Still Time will headline the event, and The Arch Dukes and Play It By will open.
Guitarist Nick Bilich of Still Time was also Wood’s fraternity brother. Pangrekar said that all the members of the band knew Wood personally since he lived near them and often attended their practices.
Fraternity alumni as well as Wood’s family will be in attendance, and Pangrekar said that the entire greek system has expressed support for the benefit.
Proceeds from the event will be divided in half between a scholarship created by the fraternity and the Wood family, and a Cal Poly History Department scholarship.
Pangrekar said that Lambda Chi Alpha will give out the first scholarship at the event.
“The scholarship is based on the gentleman code of conduct in the fraternity,” he said.
“There is a panel of people that knew Spencer well who will pick someone that tries to live with the morals and values that Spencer did.”
In January, the history department and the fraternity co-sponsored a memorial service for Wood.
Members of the history department voted to honor Wood’s memory by creating an academic scholarship, the Spencer Wood Memorial Award.
John Snetsinger, co-chair of the history department, said that Wood had expressed a desire to enter a master’s program. The award is designed for students who have demonstrated academic excellence in the Master of Arts history program.
“The scholarship keeps Spencer in our minds,” Snetsinger said.
“He didn’t start out as a history major, but he became a history major and really loved it.”
This past spring, two $500 scholarships were given to students who were nominated by faculty members.
Snetsinger said the department plans to continue granting two awards per year and that the benefit concert will help contribute to the monetary amount of the scholarships.
Tickets are either $10 in advance at Downtown Brewing Co., Boo Boo Records and www.ticketweb.com, or $15 at the door.
The event runs from 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday at Downtown Brewing Co.