It is difficult to walk down J-Hall without noticing the continuously growing memorial that has been created inside and outside the display cabinet . It is difficult to walk past it and not think about what it stands for. It is difficult to think about the burden that the school, and the entire community has endured with the tragic, early departure of one of the high school’s own.

Sophomore Katie LeClair was killed in an automobile accident last month, and the next day, the first day back after spring vacation, the morning announcements at the high school broadcasted awful news for all, especially her closest friends. The entire school community felt the loss, and soon after, her locker was covered with flowers, pictures, messages and memories to commemorate her life and her impact on others. Her locker quickly became too small for all the mementos, which then, necessitated a memorial area in J-Hall to be established.

While it is difficult to walk by without thinking about the tragedy and the loss, its presence is also comforting for some students. “It feels good to know that people cared. It really makes me happy when I look at all the good things people wrote,” said sophomore Lyndsay Boucher. “She would have wanted to be remembered this way.”

Not only has this memorial area been established, two websites have been set up for students to post their thoughts, memories and comments for Katie. Both websites have had pages upon pages written by her closest friends, her family and even by those who didn’t even knew who she was. “I think that it’s really good that all the kids came together to do this, even the people that didn’t know her,” said junior Nicole Bongiorni.

Many students who may never have encountered LeClair have really been touched by this event and have been able to put pieces of their own lives in perspective. “The school was silent, and so quiet. This is really just a big loss,” said junior Sarah Turgeon. “I wish she could see what everyone did. Many people lined up with candles along her street, this has brought back a lot of friendships. It really makes you realize how quickly you could lose someone.”

“Katie was friendly to everyone, and she was always smiling,” said junior Sara Wilson. “She cared so much about her friends and she didn’t care about what others thought. I’m going to miss talking to her at lunch and having her to cheer me up, and just her being so happy. The school lost one of the greatest girls, she went out of her way to be nice to people.”

LeClair is described by all of her friends as having contagious laughter and happiness that just couldn’t be resisted, and an amazing smile. “She was just so bubbly and outgoing,” said Bongiorni. “She would laugh and she would make everyone else laugh.”

“She was just so fun to be around, a good friend who knew how to be happy and have fun. She was nice to everyone,” said Boucher. “I’m going to miss everything about her, her being there for me, hanging out, talking, the advice she would always give me, her laugh. I’ll always remember the day before vacation, she was so excited to go to Florida and she was so happy, just having a good day. She brought so much happiness, and made people laugh. She brought people up when they were down, she would talk out when no one else would.”

There is no doubt that LeClair will be remembered by not only her closest friends and family but by the entire school community. “When I first saw it [the memorial in J-Hall] I was upset, but after I saw how many people cared and how they came together to remember her, I was happy,” said Turgeon. “She was a beautiful, trustworthy person who you could always count on. I will never forget any of the memories we had together. We could just do nothing and still have a good time. I’m going to miss having her by my side.”

The J-Hall memorial, which is still being added to, really shows the impression that Katie has made upon the students at the high school. “It definitely makes me think about just the impact that she had on so many people. It’s hard to believe that it really happened, why her, but it’s nice to see that so many people were also touched,” said Wilson.

While the school has established an area to honor her as a person, her influence and her happiness, her family, friends and the entire community will continue to remember, miss and think about her. They will think about her smile, her ability to brighten others’ days, her friendship, her having fun, her hall wandering, her exuberance, her love, and even one of her favorite songs, the Billy Joel’s-“Only the Good Die Young.”

LeClair’s departure was early, but her presence, her life, was felt by more people than she even knew.