One person, just by existing, touches so many people’s lives in a multitude of ways. Whether or not they are aware of it, they have made a difference for the better and have left the world more beautiful than they found it. This was true of Kelly Hackendahl, a bright, energetic, and promising student at Libertyville High School and later, at Indiana University, Bloomington. Her winning personality and deep involvement in both communities made her legacy a permanent one.
Kelly passed away on August 28 and was found in her Zeta Tau Alpha sorority house at Indiana University just five days after celebrating her 20th birthday. Kelly was a student at LHS, moving from Iowa to Libertyville just weeks before her freshman year. She graduated high school in June 2012.
Those close to her remember Kelly as a student who was constantly striving to highlight the good in every situation.
“Before we left for college, we were all crying because we’d been so close and couldn’t imagine attending different schools without each other. But Kelly tried her best to lighten the mood and put a smile on everyone’s face by saying she was worried about people at IU not knowing that she was a princess. She made light of the situation, even though she was sad about leaving us too,” Elise Eidson, an LHS alumna and close friend of Kelly’s, remembered.
Eidson also emphasized Kelly’s knack for being an upbeat, active, and involved person.
“[Kelly] was involved in poms, student ambassadors, FBLA, and choir. She was new to Libertyville herself as a freshman, and so she was very dedicated to getting involved and welcoming new students because she knew how it felt. She truly was one of the most genuine, outgoing, and down-to-earth friends I’ve ever had. She had a way of making any situation seem positive. Kelly really was beautiful both inside and out, and her friendship is something I will always cherish and will never forget,” Eidson said.
Kelly’s outgoing personality didn’t stop when she entered the classroom — in fact, it carried over into everything she did. Known for her outstanding and unwavering commitment to her education, Kelly often made connections with and drew inspiration from her teachers. She was a history major in college and aspired to teach someday, modeling herself after LHS AP European History teacher Mr. Kevin O’Neill.
“You know, I can picture her, she was a little tiny freshman in my world history class… and it’s not easy for a little freshman girl who doesn’t know anybody in that room to speak up and ask questions, but she did… and she would participate,” Mr. O’Neill recalled. “And then Euro was a challenge for her… but she just loved it, and she loved the learning and being challenged.”
At the forefront of Kelly’s personality was her overwhelming kindness and her innate ability to lead and mentor others. A counselor at Banner Day Camp based out of Lake Forest, Kelly proved to be an inspiration to the group of fifteen 12-year-old girls she mentored for the summer.
“We got a letter from a young girl, one of [Kelly’s] campers, who sent it to Banner, and Banner sent it to us. She wanted to let us know that she’s now going to four-week sleep away camp. And she didn’t want to go to Banner initially because you know, you’re 12… day camp isn’t cool anymore. But she wrote, ‘I went to Banner, and I met Kelly, and she made every day fun and cool. She made every girl feel like her best friend, and she made Banner ten times better than my sleep away camp,’” Mrs. Jodi Hackendahl, Kelly’s mother, said.
Even before starting her journey at Indiana University in hopes of becoming a teacher, Kelly was already working to make those around her better people. “I learned acceptance [from her]. Even if I gossiped a little bit, she’d say, ‘Mom, that’s not okay. I mean, who cares?’” Mrs. Hackendahl reminisced.
Kelly’s passing has brought Libertyville together as a community. Her shining personality and eternal optimism have changed the lives of students, parents, and teachers alike. Most recently, Singalila, a local accessories shop located in downtown Libertyville, paid tribute to Kelly with a display of paper cranes. The cranes will be shipped to Indiana University’s chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha, Kelly’s sorority, to decorate the house during recruitment.
This past October, the LHS poms team also helped raise funds for ZTA’s breast cancer philanthropy, a cause that Kelly supported very passionately throughout her college career. This new found unity and sense of togetherness is something Kelly would be proud of.
As Mr. O’Neill stated, “…the best measure of someone is how many people [they’ve] touched.” In that case, Kelly’s unencumbered happiness and limitless optimism will preserve her legacy for years to come.
