John Gesinski, beloved accompanist in the UW-Madison dance program, died early Wednesday morning from injuries sustained in a hit-and-run incident on Madison's east side.
The incident took place Tuesday at around 5 p.m. at the intersection of Cottage Grove Road and Vernon Avenue, according to a police statement.
According to the report, Gesinski, who was 63, was walking away from a grocery store when a vehicle turning onto Cottage Grove Road struck him and continued driving.
\Everyone in [the dance] program really feels the loss,"" said Marlene Skog, assistant faculty associate in the dance program. ""It has been a really gray day here.""
Vivian Tomlinson, who instructs classes in the dance program, worked with Gesinski for nearly 30 years. He said Gesinski's contributions to the dance program were invaluable.
""He took the trouble to find out what the [dance] exercises were, the steps were, so that when he accompanied he could fit the music to the steps, not just play the notes,"" he said. ""He made the music alive.""
Tomlinson added he never needed to worry when Gesinski was accompanying, because he knew the music would fit whatever he was teaching.
""He was such an inspiration to the dance community in Madison as a whole, not just to the [UW-Madison] dance program,"" Skog said.
Skog called Gesinski an exceptional musician, and said he was generous, both with his music and his time.
""He was very sensitive and aware of the needs of the students,"" she said. ""He cannot be replaced.""
Skog said that at the time of his death, Gesinski was in the process of transcribing musical scores into Braille for the benefit of students of his colleagues. Gesinski, who himself was legally blind, did this so other visually impaired people could learn to read music through Braille.
In addition, Gesinski recently donated a sizeable collection of music to the UW-Madison music library, Skog said.
""That's his dedication to students and to education,"" Skog said.
Both Tomlinson and Skog commented on Gesinski's wonderful sense of humor and how Gesinski would use it to lighten the often-intense atmosphere of a dance class.
""He just loved life,"" Skog said.
""It was sad,"" Tomlinson said, referring to student reaction. ""A lot of them came, knocked on my door and said 'Can we hug you please?'""
Police are looking for Christian Garcia-Morales as a ""person of interest"" in the incident. Garcia-Morales, 24, is described as 5'6"", 150 lbs. Anyone with information about Garcia-Morales can contact Madison Area Crime Stoppers at (608) 266-6014.
