Branford Remembers, Mourns Tally Sepot

The Branford community is mourning the loss of a young woman, killed Sunday in a tragic one-car accident.

Vitalya “Tally” Sepot, 19, was one of seven Penn State students returning to State College, Pa., after a fundraising trip.

The crash occurred shortly before 2 p.m. on the turnpike in Charlestown Township, which is in Chester County, Pa.

The university identified the other students involved in the accident as:
• Victoria Barrett, 18, from Gibsonia, Pa.
• Sarah Bixby, 18, from Flemington, N.J.
• Claire Fountas, 19, from Barrington, Ill.
• Matthew Hrynkow, 20, from Annandale, Va.
• Brooke Kalodner, 18, from Voorhees, N.J.
• Max Titlebaum, 20, from Merion Station, Pa.

According to the New Haven Register, police said the group was traveling west in the right lane when their vehicle entered the shoulder and then abruptly swerved back into the land and again turned toward the shoulder.

All except Sepot and Kalodner were wearing seat belts. Sepot was ejected from the vehicle, the Register said.

The Branford Eagle reported that Titlebaum was driving the SUV at the time of the accident. Four of the six surviving students were injured. All were taken to Paoli Memorial Hospital in Chester County.

A long-time friend of the Branford resident said Sepot’s smile was what she will remember the most.

Jenny Royka, who the Register said had been friends with Sepot since sixth grade, said she was “the literal sun” and could always find a way to make someone else smile even during the worst possible situation.

According to Royka, Sepot liked swimming and tennis and was involved in the yearbook committee when they attended Branford High School together. They graduated in 2014.

The high school’s tennis coach, Bill Previdi, told the Branford Eagle that Sepot was a “natural leader” and a “wonderful sport.”

Previdi said she never gave up and was a “gutsy” player.

He said the news of her untimely death was “heartbreaking” and that he had heard from many of Sepot’s teammates who were distraught.

The students were returning to Penn State from a trip to raise money for THON, a student-run group that raises awareness of pediatric cancer, the Register article said.

Sepot’s sorority—Alpha Chi Omega—created a GoFundMe page to raise money for their chapter and Sepot’s family. As of Wednesday morning, more than $33,000 had been donated.

The funds will provide the sorority members with the organization’s national flower to wear to Sepot’s funeral and a breakfast for the morning of the departure for the services. Additional funds will be donated to her family, according to the Register.

On the GoFundPage, the sorority thanked those who had donated.

“We hope to bring a little comfort to the Sepot family and the current members of the Beta Mu chapter,” the sorority wrote. “Tally, rest peacefully and may angels lead you in.”

For more, read the New Haven Register article and the Branford Eagle article.