The young woman found dead in an apparent suicide at a midtown hotel yesterday was an NYU student pursuing a degree in Creative Management and Art Direction. The body of Rowen Altenburger, 18, of New Jersey, was discovered yesterday afternoon in a room at the Bryant Park Hotel, after her mother used a GPS app to trace her daughter to the area around Bryant Park. A police source tells the Post she then "called different locations near the park and eventually phoned the Bryant Park Hotel where staff said that her daughter was staying." Altenburger was found dead at approximately 12:30.
Police sources also say Altenburger's body was found with a plastic bag over her head, and a suicide note in a sealed envelope addressed to her mother was in the room, along with prescription medication for treating depression. In an unsealed draft of the note, Altenburger referenced her depression "and apologized for taking her life," the Daily News reports.
"She was an amazing girl. Very bright, very well spoken and very artistic," Rebecca Matthews, a manager at the Links of London jewelry store on Madison Avenue, where Altenburger worked as a sales associate, told AMnewyork. "She had a bright future ahead of her. This is just so sad."
The talented Altenburger shared her watercolors via Tumblr and her website, where she also noted "it can be easy to lose yourself."
If someone you know exhibits warning signs of suicide: do not leave the person alone, remove any firearms, alcohol, drugs or sharp objects that could be used in a suicide attempt, and call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or take the person to an emergency room or seek help from a medical or mental health professional.
