as they walked in.
Bioand then turn into more of a stan than me!).
“How the hell did you know that?”
Omar Sanchez joined EW in 2019 and quickly earned the respect of his colleagues.Credit: Omar Sanchez
I asked him, stunned.
“I’m a VH1 baby!”
He had an appetite for wanting to know and experience more that he never lost.
To quote one of his faves, J.D.
Read on to see how Omar impacted the lives of his EW (and Meredith-wide) family.
I had the pleasure of working with Omar not once, but twice.
MyTHRbuddy was coming to EW!
To know Omar was to know laughter, and goofiness, and above all pure kindness.
I’ll miss my friend.Gone GirlBook Club forever.
Lauren Huff
From his first day in the office, Omar was such a force of positivity.
I remember so many fond memories of exchanging a smile and a quick catch-up in the kitchen.
But my favorite Omar memory is over one of our shared passions Harry Styles.
I will miss that profusely.
But amazingly, Omar never did.
My daily pastime was to yell OMAR!
Omar never cursed, either a phenomenon I found foreign but refreshing, nonetheless.
He brought joy to our crazy, mixed-up world.
I’ll miss you.
), he consistently looked for ways he could improve as a writer, interviewer, and fact checker.
I will miss having those conversations with him.
He brought a rare, palpable enthusiasm to everything we did together.
I’ll always be grateful for that.
Talking to him was so easy he made you feel like an automatic best friend.
I feel very lucky to have known him.
He will be very, very missed.
Omar’s observations were astute, his commentary witty, and his heart pure.
He could talk to anyone about anything, and it never felt too small.
Whatever stress I was ruminating over in that moment, was gone.
I felt like I was in middle school again.
Don’t get me wrong Omar was a hard worker and ultra focused about his job.
I mean, come on, what a career highlight!).
But he also kept you in the moment.
He reminded me to have fun.
And I want to remember him in that way.
Kind, driven, and happy to revel in the small stuff.
He loved EW and pop culture and that came through in his writing.
Rest in peace, Omar.
Kristen Baldwin
Omar is actually responsible for my Twitter handle.
If we were both being honest, our mutual true love was basketball.
And that’s a very rare thing at EW.
My colleague Dan Snierson and I often joke that EW actually stands for “Ew, sports.”
So I can’t tell you how welcomed Omar’s slacks and kitchen run-in conversations about basketball were.
But kindly just don’t let it be against the Celtics!
That’s just who he was.
That’s who I’ll miss.
Gerrad Hall
I’ll never forget meeting Omar on his first day.
He was so friendly and had the most amazing energy about him.
Omar was one of the good ones.
I’ll really miss him.
Rebecca Detken
Omar radiated warmth and kindness.
He brightened every room he walked into and greeted everyone each day with a smile and kind word.
His passion for our industry was palpable and infectious.
He had such creativity and enthusiasm for our industry.
“Hey guys, how’s it going!?
His energy was contagious and pure.
His cheer was not there to impress others.
It was simply part of who he was.
He craved that extra interaction or joke whenever he could connect more with his colleagues and make them laugh.
I will also remember Omar’s consistent desire to learn and improve as a journalist.
I’m so grateful that I got to know Omar even for a short time.
Justine Browning
In all my interactions with Omar, he was so enthusiastic and a pleasure to talk with.
He didn’t have to do that, but it was so thoughtful and made my day.
It came naturally for Omar to spread positivity in the office.
That act of kindness was hardly unusual for Omar, who loved everyone around him so fiercely and selflessly.
Morgan Smith
Omar’s family has set upa GoFundMe pagefor his memorial.
If you’re able to, kindly donate.
Here’s a selection of Omar’s stories:
