Edited by Ray Whitehouse
About 15 students gathered at the southeast end of Lakeside Field Thursday night to paint a rock in memory of Weinberg senior Corrie Lazar, who was killed after being struck by a car July 27.
Lazar, originally from Seattle, was spending the summer as a counselor at Camp Laurel in Readfield, Maine. She transferred from Western Washington University to Northwestern, where she was an American Studies major, a member of Kappa Delta sorority and a Community Assistant at Foster-Walker Complex.
The group that gathered Thursday was comprised of Lazar’s CA peers, residents, Mock Trial team members and other close friends.
Lazar’s Mock Trial coach, graduate student Hiro Tanaka, encouraged the group to relinquish its somber tone and think of what Lazar would have wanted from her friends.
“I was Corrie’s Mock Trial coach, but it didn’t take long for Corrie to become a friend, too,” he said. “If she were here right now, she would tell us all to smile.”
When considering options for what to paint on Lazar’s rock, Tanaka suggested “something happy.”
Lazar’s signature phrase, “Yay,” was painted on auxiliary rock, while friends painted, “We love you Corrie” on a larger rock.
Although a brief rainstorm interrupted the group shortly after it began painting, the event carried on as a rainbow formed over Lake Michigan. The group was not discouraged even when the rain picked up again, choosing to cover the finished rock with garbage bags.
“My three words for Corrie were ‘kind,’ ‘selfless’ and ‘caring,'” said George Michael, a graduate student who was friends with Corrie. “It’s like trying to hold onto water.”
Lazar’s bubbly, energetic personality made her stand out amongst her peers at NU, Weinberg senior and Mock Trial member Jennifer Berman said.
A memorial service will be held on campus in the fall, according to an e-mail addressed to the NU community from Vice President for Student Affairs William Banis.
Related: Weinberg senior struck by car, killed (7/30/09)
