Conor Skelding, former Editor-in-Chief of The Blue and White and frequent contributor to Bwog, passed away last Friday.

Content warning: Mentions of death, illness

Conor Skelding (CC ’14), a prolific journalist on campus and in New York City, died last Friday of pancreatic cancer. He was 31. 

Originally from River Forest, IL, Skelding joined the Columbia community in 2010, majoring in English and American Studies. He made his mark as an enthusiastic student journalist. During his time at Columbia, he served as Editor-in-Chief of The Blue and White and contributed extensively to Bwog, the Columbia Lion, and WikiCU. After graduating, Skelding went on to work as a reporter at Politico and Reorg. Most recently, he served on the Sunday Staff of the New York Post, specializing in government and politics. 

Skelding is survived by his wife, Lizzy Trelstad (CC ’16), his parents, David Skelding and Dr. Karen Deighan, his brothers, Cameron, Owen and Aidan Skelding, his sisters-in-law, Caroline Hurley and Joanna Skelding, and his niece, Luciana Skelding.

Speaking to Bwog, former Editor-in-Chief and friend of Skelding Alexandra Svokos (CC ’14) shared, “Conor is remembered as a dedicated journalist through and through who inspired all of us at Bwog and The Blue and White to dig deeper and take our role on campus seriously, if with mirth and snark. He helped define Columbia’s undergraduate media landscape. I always appreciated being able to discuss journalistic quandaries with him, even when we had our differences, and I can appreciate the ways in which we pushed each other to be better, cleverer, and braver. Thirty-one is too young to die. My thoughts go out to his family and loved ones.”

Van Am Quad via Bwog Archives