Katherine Ibanez applied to Penn State without telling her parents because they wanted her to stay close to home in West Palm Beach, Fla.

"It was like the happiest day in her life, the day she got accepted to Penn State," said Jonathan Ibanez, Kathy's 16-year-old brother.

Katherine Ibanez died Friday night at Mount Nittany Medical Center after falling more than 40 feet down an elevator shaft in Atherton Hall.

Nancy Y. Ibanez, Kathy's mother, said her daughter chose Penn State because it was a good school and that she loved being a student here.

The library was among the places she liked at Penn State because she loved to read, her mother said.

Kathy went to the library every other day while home for the summer and would read about four books each week, her brother said. She liked "all kinds and any kind" of books, including dramas and the Left Behind series.

Kathy's boyfriend of almost two years, Ben Holland, is also a student at Penn State.

"I just know she was loved by everyone and always had a smile on her face," Holland said. "I was hoping to marry her someday."

Her brother said Kathy was in love with Ben.

"She wanted to get married to him and have kids; she was looking forward to the future," he said.

Her mother would tell Kathy that Ben was her guardian angel because of how well he took care of her.

Kathy, a junior majoring in labor and industrial relations, planned to go to graduate school and had goals of working in human resources with minorities.

"She was the most wonderful and generous person with everyone she met," her mother said.

Although she was born in New York and moved to Florida when she was four, her family is from Columbia in South America. Kathy spoke both English and Spanish.

Her brother said Kathy had a big heart and tons of friends.

A member of the color guard and editor of her high school newspaper, Kathy was always busy, he said.

"There was never a dull moment with her: She loved having fun," he said.

He said he was close with his sister and they would always "mess around," going to the pool, the movies and the beach when she was home. Their choices in movies varied, though.

Her brother said she had "typical girl" tastes in movies and liked romantic comedies such as Save the Last Dance and 10 Things I Hate About You, while he was more interested in action movies.

He said she absolutely loved the snow and winter, despite living most of her life in Florida.

"She'd always told me you have to come visit [Penn State] in the winter, it's so beautiful here," her brother said.

Penn State spokesman Bill Mahon said a memorial service may be held sometime this week, but no details have been announced.