Two Brothers, One Campus,

And A Long List Of Accomplishments

By Eliza Hallabeck

Brothers, friends, roommates, and running mates for the Western Connecticut State University student government, Edmund Breitling and Ethan Breitling have more in common than most brothers, and they give Newtown and their family the credit for helping them excel in college.

Edmund, 22, graduated from WestConn this past May with a degree in public relations, and he will be attending graduate school at WestConn this fall, while Ethan, 19, will be in his sophomore year at the school as a prenursing major.

They lived together for Ethan’s first year on campus, but living together on campus, at first, was not planned. Edmund was a resident advisor for the campus in his senior year as an undergraduate, and Ethan was waiting to hear from the housing department on campus if he had a place to live for the fast-approaching semester. When Edmund found out, he told the university to place his younger brother in his dorm, and the brothers lived with four other roommates for one year on campus.

Ethan was the only first-year student in the dorm, but not all of the other roommates were upper classman, he said. Two of their roommates were sophomores.

“I’ve been around Edmund’s friends all my life,” said Ethan.

When Edmund started going to WestConn in the fall of 2004, he had a similar situation. Elisabeth Breitling, Edmund and Ethan’s older sister, graduated from WestConn in 2005. She was on campus for Edmund’s first year, and she knew many people.

“Everyone loved her, because she’s a people person,” said Edmund about his sister. “And I met all of her friends.”

Since Elisabeth graduated, Edmund has become the president of the student government on campus, a resident advisor, and he is captain of the rugby team. He said having her there for his first year helped him to meet many of the people who helped him achieve what he wanted on campus over the next four years.

During his freshman year on campus, Ethan became the vice president while Edmund became the president for the student government. According to Ethan, “Breitling and Breitling” was the brothers’ slogan for their campaign for the student government positions.

“Everyone thought we were a firm,” said Edmund.

Ethan said when they were being interviewed for their positions on the student government, the main question they were asked was, how they will work together on the student government.

“Being brothers,” Ethan joked, “we can communicate without words. We are actually communicating at all times.”

Ethan will be a resident advisor this coming fall at WestConn.

Being Boy Scouts from an early age in Newtown also helped the brothers become leaders, they said. Edmund and Ethan are both Eagle Scouts.

 “Scouting is one of the most important things a parent can do for their son,” said Ethan. “It really made me into who I am today.”

Both brothers say their family and Newtown helped to mold them. Edmund and Ethan said one person during their learning careers in Newtown in particular helped them to understand the importance of being outgoing.

“Jeff Tolson was a great inspiration,” Ethan said. Mr Tolson is a guidance counselor at the Newtown High School. “He taught us the value of life.”

 Ethan said he learned that doing things that you feel strongly about is important, but sometimes not everything can be taken too seriously.

Edmund said his years of being a student in Newtown helped to prepare him for going to school at WestConn.

“The Newtown High School is a place that allows you to become a leader if you want to be,” said Edmund.

He said he owes the largest part of his ability to strive for goals to his parents, sister, and grandmother.

“My biggest personality trait though, is my ability to network,” said Edmund, “and I really learned that from Jeff Tolson.”

During high school both brothers worked in Newtown. Edmund worked at the Inn at Newtown, where he said many of his friends worked with him. Ethan still occasionally works for Lexington Gardens when they need help, and he worked there during high school.

While attending NHS Edmund and Ethan were also both members of the wrestling team.

Before both brothers went to WestConn, Edmund said he applied to 11 different colleges, and his mother told him, in the end, that he would be going to WestConn.

“I was upset at first about going to WestConn,” Edmund said. He explained that he felt the school would be a replica of NHS and most of his friends were leaving for out of state schools. “Then Jeff Tolson told me I could be a big fish in the small pond. That really stuck with me.”

Now Edmund said he works for admissions at WestConn, and part of his job is to give tours to the incoming freshmen. During every tour of the campus, Edmund said he asks if there are any Nighthawks in the crowd.