Services for East Windsor Teen to be Held Friday

Services for a Hightstown teenager whose body was found on the train tracks near Princeton Junction take place Friday, May 17, according to an obituary posted on Saul Funeral Homes’ website.

Riley Branstrom, 18, was discovered last Friday morning after he was reported missing on Monday. He had last been seen near Hightstown High School at around 2:30 p.m. He didn’t answer phone calls, but his phone was tracked to Monmouth Battlefield State Park in Freehold. His truck was located in the Princeton Junction parking lot.

His body was found on Friday, and his identity was confirmed earlier this week, West Windsor Police Lt. Patrick O’Brien said.

Branstrom graduated from Hightstown last year, and is described as a FIRST robotics nerd in his obituary. He was attending the University of Rhode Island, with the intention of earning a degree in marine biology and engineering. He excelled in graphic design, science and mathematics.

He was born on July 1, 1994 in Rockville, Maryland before his family, which includes his parents and two sisters, moved to East Windsor. He enjoyed summer vacations in Michigan.

The Glackin/Saul Funeral Home will hold visitation for relatives and friends from 3-5 p.m., and from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on Friday, May 17. The funeral home is located at 136 Morrison Ave. in Hightstown.

A memorial service will also be held on Tuesday, May 21, in Gladstone, Mich., followed by the burial in Holy Cross Cemetery in Escanaba, Michigan on Wednesday, May 22.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests making a donation in Riley’s name to Mid-Atlantic Robotics (via check mailed to Treasurer, Mid-Atlantic Robotics, 154 Old Clinton Road, Flemington, N.J. 08822) or American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (www.afsp.org).

To read the full obituary, click here.