BHS students encouraged to wear purple Friday in memory of Kara Schepens

Friday marks the anniversary of a tragic loss for Bearden students. On Feb. 24, 2011, junior Kara Schepens was killed in a car accident. Kara’s friends and family have mourned her loss for the past 12 months. “It’s so bittersweet to remember how much everyone’s lives changed a year ago, and how we lost such a perfect, kind-hearted, always happy girl,” said senior Sydney Wilcox, a close friend to Schepens. In memory of Schepens, Bearden students are invited to wear purple – her favorite color – on Friday. “There was a group of us that relied – and still rely – on each other right after Kara’s death,” senior Vikki Newman said. “We all decided on purple mutually because it was her favorite color.” Newman and other close friends to Schepens plan to dine at IHOP Friday morning, a favorite restaurant of Schepens, and clean up the small cross they have erected at the site of the crash near the ramp linking Northshore Drive to Pellissippi. “Honoring Kara sometimes is such a hard thing to do, honestly,” Newman said. “She lived a life grounded in her faith, family, and friends, and I think in the business of today, we often forget that.” The Bearden community has also helped to commemorate Schepens’s life in several ways, one of which was sponsored by Senior Committee. “The Senior Committee wanted to give back to both Kara and her family,” Senior Class President Lacey Tragesser said. “Last semester, we held a brief memorial service in the memorial garden to dedicate a stone to Kara.” Schepens’s loved ones, many of which will be wearing ribbons for her on Friday, hope to see students decked in purple. “It’s exciting and heartwarming to know how many people will be wearing purple to show their love and support,” Wilcox said. Schepens would have turned 18 on Wednesday. “She wanted us to experience life, and I think that’s what’s kept us going,” Newman said. Rachel Riley is the news editor for The Bark. Follow The Bark on Twitter @BeardenBARK, and like The Bark (Bearden High School) on Facebook.