By Kenny Sokan, news staff

Mohamed El-Toukhy, a 2013 Northeastern graduate known for his compassion, altruism and love for dining out and soccer, died at age 24.

On the evening of Sunday, April 20, El-Toukhy was playing basketball with his friend Robert Kim when El-Toukhy began to feel dizzy and lightheaded. He seemed to recover, but later collapsed. He was taken to Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where he died Tuesday morning, April 22, from cardiac arrest.

El-Toukhy was born Jan. 31, 1990 in Qatar. When he was a child, he and his family moved to Alexandria, Egypt, where he lived until he came to the United States to attend Northeastern in 2009. He attended the university because his father, Ahmed, who died in 2006, was a visiting associate in the department of chemistry from 1981 to 1993. El-Toukhy obtained United States citizenship in 2013.

El-Toukhy was an electrical engineering major. He was an A-student, graduating with high honors in the top eight percent of his graduating class in the department of electrical and computer engineering.

“He was very dedicated to his studies. He was a young man with a very promising future,” Ellen Zierk, El-Toukhy’s academic advisor, said in an email to the News. He was always kind and respectful. He had a smile that would light up the room. He will be missed.”

El-Toukhy was a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Northeastern branch, the world’s largest professional association dedicated to advancing technological innovation and excellence for the benefit of humanity.

Denis Ansah, a 2014 graduate and electrical engineering major, thought of El-Toukhy as a  mentor.

“He was a year ahead of me and advised me on what classes I should take,” Ansah said. “He was very intelligent… He would always try and help me with my homework even if he didn’t have a lot of time.”

Ansah and El-Toukhy met during their freshman orientation, later bonding over their love of soccer in their Introduction to Engineering class.

Speaking of his friend’s helpful personality, Ansah shared that El-Toukhy had given him his textbooks from his freshman year courses that Ansah would also be taking. Two weeks before he died, El-Toukhy asked Ansah to give the books to another student who would need them.

“Since I’ve known him, I cannot say there is one bad thing about him. He was one of the best people I knew… He was just good, in every kind of way,” Ansah said.

El-Toukhy completed two co-ops at Nstar, a utility company in Boston that provides retail electricity and natural gas. During his second co-op in 2012, he met Robert Kim, an electrical engineering major and rising senior, with whom he became very close.

“He was one of the kindest, most honest people I have ever met and always willing to help others,” Kim said. “He was one of my best friends in Boston… He was always there for me.”

With both Kim and Ansah, El-Toukhy spent much of his time talking about soccer.

“He was a big soccer fan,” said Kim. “His favorite futbol club was the Chelsea Club in England.”

In their spare time, Kim and El-Toukhy played soccer together. El-Toukhy also enjoyed ping pong and going out to eat. His favorite place to eat was Yamato, a Japanese restaurant located in Brighton, Mass., which he often frequented with his friends.

His cousin Hazem El-Toukhy said “he was like a younger brother to me… [I miss] everything about him. I miss his presence.”

El-Toukhy is survived by his mother and brother who live in Alexandria, Egypt.

Photos courtesy Hazem El-Toukhy.