About the Challenge Team
Our Story
This project began with the four of us (left to right): Danielle Paisley, Chris Kazanchi, Charlie Kratus, and Kashish Sachdeva—students brought together by grief, friendship, and a shared belief that UCLA needs more spaces where people feel seen, supported, and genuinely connected.
In the wake of losing a fellow Bruin we all cared about, we were brought together by the invisible thread of connection Nicholas created in each of our lives. What began as individual conversations about how we were coping turned into a collective responsibility to create something meaningful.
We also realized how often students default to “I’m good, how are you?” even when they might not be. It matters to say how we are really feeling so we can lean on one another, talk honestly, and show up for our community.
What started as a hope for more open conversations has grown into a commitment to start a movement centered on compassion, awareness, and community healing. Together, we want to honor a life that was deeply loved, support student wellbeing, and help make UCLA and the world a place where everyone feels like they have somebody to lean on even during the rainiest of days.
DANIELLE
My name is Danielle Paisley, and I am a fourth-year UCLA Nursing student with a focus in psychiatry and mental health research. I met Nich in the summer of 2024 when we were both New Student Advisors, and from the first day we worked together he made me feel welcomed in a way I hadn’t felt before. What started as an invite to a simple shared lunch became one of the most meaningful friendships of my life.
Whether it was Coffee Club meetings or a quick run-in on campus, Nich made people feel seen, included, and valued. He had a way of creating moments that made you laugh, breathe, and feel alive whether you spend 5 minutes or 5 hours together. After his passing, I felt a responsibility to honor the way he lived: showing up for people, building community, and reminding others that they matter. Being part of this project is my way of carrying forward the kindness, joy, and belonging he brought into the world. I hope that through this movement, students feel the same sense of connection and support that Nich inspired in so many of us.
KASHISH
My name is Kashish Sachdeva, and I am double majoring in Public Affairs and Political Science at UCLA. Nich and I crossed paths all over campus: Bridge, Coffee Club, PLLC, and the political theory classes we took for fun. However, our friendship grew in the intentional moments outside those settings: trying new restaurants together, late study sessions, and conversations that unfolded naturally into hours.
Nich taught me what it means to truly live and experience. He encouraged me to say yes more often, to try things even when they scared me, and to slow down enough to actually feel the world around me. His laughter and warmth made ordinary days feel golden, and because of him, I tried to carry myself with that same kind of light. When he passed, I kept asking how I was supposed to keep living with intention when the person who taught me how wasn’t here anymore. But over time, I realized Nich’s light didn’t disappear - it just lives differently now. It's in the love and warmth he left behind in all of us and it’s up to us to keep it alive through our choices, our compassion, and the way we show up for one another.
Being part of this project is my way of making sure more students have someone like Nich in their lives, someone who reminds them to live fully instead of just going through the motions. The truth is, UCLA is full of students who are struggling quietly, saying “I’m fine” because they don’t know where or how to say anything else. Nich made it safe for me to be real, to say when I wasn’t okay. This project is our chance to create that same safety for others by building spaces where students feel seen, heard and supported.
CHARLIE
I’m Charlie Kratus, and I’m a third year Economics student at UCLA. I first met Nich during my first year while filming a video for Good Morning UCLA. I was immediately struck by his positivity, wit, and kindness. As I got to know him better, I was blown away by how many people called him their friend. It felt like every day someone would tell me that they knew Nich too.
Nich was an incredible leader. He had a way of including everyone and encouraging people to be part of something bigger than themselves, especially the new students he mentored as a New Student Advisor over the summers.
My hope is that through this challenge, we can make Nich proud and carry forward the light he brought into so many people’s lives. Like Nich said in his high school graduation speech, "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift", and together we can help more people appreciate that gift.