CINCINNATI — Lauren Hill’s teammates and coaches are remembering the 19-year-old college basketball player with her own inspiring words: “Never give up.”
CINCINNATI — Lauren Hill’s teammates and coaches are remembering the 19-year-old college basketball player with her own inspiring words: “Never give up.”
An example she lived by as she fought a brain tumor and rallied those around her to help her achieve her dream of playing in a game.
Several hundred students gathered on the grassy quad at Mount St. Joseph on Friday, spelling out Hill’s No. 22 with blue plastic cups on a chain-link fence a few hours after she died at a local hospital. Her death was confirmed Friday morning by the co-founder of her nonprofit foundation, The Cure Starts Now.
Hill attended the Division III school and played after being diagnosed with the inoperable tumor. She spent her final year polishing a layup and inspiring others to live fully.
“She taught us that every day is a blessing, every moment is a gift,” school President Tony Aretz said.
She did it by showing up for practice even though turning her head made her dizzy and left her physically spent. She appeared in four games, making five layups, before the tumor’s effects forced her to stop.
And she smiled a lot in defiance of the disease that was slowly sapping her of life. Her teammates remembered that smile on Friday.
“This pain will end, the smile will not,” junior forward Erica Walsh told the crowd.
Players cried on each other’s shoulders while the crowd sang five verses of “Amazing Grace” during the half-hour vigil. Coach Dan Benjamin hugged each player after they attached flowers to the fence in Hill’s honor.
Then, they huddled and yelled, “Play for 22,” the team’s slogan before each game and practice. The team visited Hill on Thursday to say goodbye.
“One of the toughest moments in my coaching career ever was lying next to her in the hospital bed, holding her hand, thanking her,” Benjamin said.
An assistant coach read one of her essays that ended with: “Never give up on your dream. Find something to fight for. I fight for others.”
Hill helped to raise roughly $1.5 million for research into pediatric cancer.
News of Hill’s death sparked quick reactions all over social networks. It was a worldwide trending topic on Twitter, where Cavaliers superstar LeBron James wrote a short letter to Hill in a series of five tweets.
“Can u please tell my Grandma I said hello,” James said. “Don’t be afraid, she knows you cause we spoke about u plenty of times.”
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association voted her the Pat Summitt Most Courageous Award, which is normally awarded at the Final Four. Athletes from other colleges autographed No. 22 jerseys and sent them in support.
As the cancer slowed her down, those around her took a bigger role in promoting her campaign. And she kept reminding everyone to appreciate life.
“Life is precious,” she told WKRC-TV. “Every moment you get with someone is a moment that’s blessed, really blessed.”