20-year-old Naval Academy Student Among Victims of Amtrak Derailment

PHILADELPHIA -- Justin Zemser, a 20-year-old midshipman at the U.S.

Naval Academy in Maryland, will be the first of victim of this week's Amtrak derailment to be buried when funeral services are held today at the Boulevard-Riverside-Hewlett Chapel on Long Island.

The sophomore student lives in New York City and was on his way home from Annapolis, Maryland,  when the train derailed Tuesday night. He wanted to be a Navy Seal, and was an only child, according to a report from CNN. 

Zemser was among eight people killed and more than 200 injured among the 243 people aboard train 188 in the Philadelphia, Penn., wreck.  

ABCNEWS reported profiles of Zemser and the other victims who include Laura Finamore, Derrick Griffith, Jim Gaines, Bob Gildersleeve, Abid Gilani, Rachel Jacobs, and Giuseppe Piras. 

PROFILE:
Photo from Google.com

Justin Zemser, a popular student leader and athlete, was on a break from the U.S. Naval Academy and heading home to Rockaway Beach, New York, where playing high school football helped him and his teammates through the devastation of Superstorm Sandy.

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus called Zemser a "crucial member" of the institution.

The 20-year-old's family released a statement mourning "a loving son, nephew and cousin who was very community-minded." They said the tragedy "has shocked us all in the worst way."

Zemser was in his second year. He served as vice president of the Jewish Midshipmen Club and played wide receiver on the academy's sprint football team. Friends at the Naval Academy remembered him for his endearing leadership qualities.

Midshipman James Lieto recalled how his sprint football teammate helped lead first-year students through the academy's Sea Trials hours before the crash. The trials, which began at 3 a.m. on Tuesday, encompass a rigorous 14-hour day of physical challenges.

Zemser, who was known as "Z," wore a floppy sun hat in the early morning darkness to lighten the mood.

"He was always there to pick other people up," Lieto said Thursday.

At Channel View School for Research in New York, Zemser was valedictorian, student government president and captain of the football team.

Outside of school, Zemser interned for New York City Councilman Eric Ulrich and former Councilman James Sanders. Ulrich called him "truly a bright, talented and patriotic young man."

Zemser also volunteered with a church program, a soup kitchen and a nursing home and mentored children with autism, U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer said. Schumer and U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks nominated Zemser to the Naval Academy, and Meeks was struck by his "high character, intellectual curiosity and maturity beyond his years."