The parents of Jeremy Herbstritt, the Penn State graduate killed in Monday's shooting at Virginia Tech, sat down with CNN's Wolf Blitzer last night to tell the nation of their son's vibrancy and pluck.

Herbstritt was a graduate student studying civil engineering at Virginia Tech and was among the 32 lives taken inside the Norris Building, an engineering building on campus.

"I don't think the newscasters really understand how hard it is to lose your son," said his father, Michael Herbstritt, a long-time Penn State employee and current Office of Physical Plant engineer. "It hits you right in your heart."

Both parents fought back bouts of emotion during their eight-minute interview. His mother, Peggy, held the hand of Michael, who was wearing a Penn State baseball cap and holding a small picture of his son.

"Jeremy had a lot of energy," Peggy said. "From the time he was born and even through graduate school, I don't think he slept more than a couple hours a day. He loved life."

Peggy said the last time they had spoken with Jeremy, an avid runner, was when he called his sister Sunday night to wish her well in her running of the Boston Marathon the next day.

Jeremy's parents were joined by Ken Stanton, a friend of Jeremy's at Virginia Tech who got to know Jeremy after seeing a passionate, energetic newcomer "talk up a storm" at a party Stanton had thrown.

"He's an open book ... he overcomes you very quickly," Stanton said.

Michael spoke in emphatic statements about his son that displayed a fervent pride in who his son was and implored viewers to celebrate his son's life.

He also rattled off myriad tidbits that helped illustrate his son's unique identity, from catching the first West Nile mosquito in Centre County to the long hours his son would devote to simply building a fence.

"If anyone ever asked Jeremy for some help, Jeremy was there to help them," Michael said. "He had a good heart."

Everybody who knew Jeremy invariably liked him, he added.

Peggy shared a similar message of hope in light of the tragic circumstances and said Jeremy's death will not seem real until she sees his body.

"I know right now you think of him as being dead," she said, directing her comments to her other children, who weren't there. "But we can keep him alive in our hearts."

Later in the night, they appeared on Larry King Live, where they talked about Jeremy's time at Penn State as an undergraduate.