and humorous personality

in their family home’s backyard or watching Marvel movies together.

Upon frst meeting Balara in the fall of 2020 his freshman year, McCorkle said he could tell that Balara “really cared about people in a way that wasn’t really vocal.”

“It was more so a feeling that you had,” McCorkle said. While Balara was introverted and a man of few words, the words he did say were always meaningful, McCorkle added.

Teammate and friend Nicholas Schwitzgebel ’24 said that before team meetings, members of the football team had to say 10 words. Balara always responded humorously by saying the literal phrase “10 words,” Schwitzgebel recalled.

Teammate and friend Nic Sani ’24 said Balara’s sense of humor always made him laugh.

“There were times when I couldn’t even breathe from laughing so hard, [where I felt] just pure joy and happiness,” Sani said. “[He] always put a smile on my face.”

BY Adriana James-Rodil The Dartmouth Staff

To his friends and family, Joshua Balara ’24 was a “gentle teddy bear” who always strove to uplift those around him, according to his Dartmouth football teammate and friend Tevita Moimoi Jr. ’24.

“You know when you hug someone and someone releases frst,” Moimoi Jr. said. You would have to be the one to do so [with Josh], or else you would just be hugging each other for a really long time ... [That is] the best way to describe Josh.”

Balara died at 21-years-old in his home in Trucksville, Pennsylvania surrounded by friends and family, according to his obituary in the Times Leader. A hardworking and compassionate player on the Dartmouth football team, Balara was diagnosed with stage four adrenal cancer in early July 2022. He is survived by his parents Gregory and Evelyne Balara and siblings Brendan and Rebecca Balara.

According to his obituary, Balara studied engineering and environmental studies at Dartmouth, played as an offensive lineman on the Varsity football team — which won the Ivy League Championship in 2021 — and belonged to the Gamma Delta Chi fraternity. Teammate and friend Gannon McCorkle ’24 said Balara was an avid builder of Lego sets, a rock music afcionado and a foodie.

Brendan Balara said his brother was his best friend, adding that they bonded over their many shared interests — whether that was playing lacrosse

McCorkle said that Balara brought a “certain energy” and “aura” to the team which “everyone really gravitated towards.” Balara had an ability to shine and light up a room — he was “the kind of guy that everyone wanted to be around,” Brendan Balara said. Dartmouth football assistant coach for the ofensive line Keith Clark said he knew Balara for nearly fve years, having recruited Balara to Dartmouth while he was in high school.

“There was no fner young man we could recruit from a character standpoint,” he said. “[Josh was] intelligent, gifted athletically and very dedicated to his sport.”

Clark added that Josh’s impact on others was made evident by the number

SEE BALARA PAGE 2