Friends of Julie Kovar packed the Memorial Lounge at the Pasquerilla Spiritual Center last night, bidding farewell to a sorority sister, valued confidante and best friend.
"Throughout our two-and-a-half years of friendship, Julie had a big impact on our lives," Heather Sones (junior-psychology) said. "She taught us what it meant to be a good friend."
Kovar, who was a junior at Penn State, died March 28 of liver failure while studying abroad in Sydney, Australia.
She had been pursuing a degree in education and hoped to become a first grade teacher. Kovar was 20 years old.
Close friends of Kovar spoke of their fond memories to the crowd, describing her as an outgoing, optimistic and supportive friend. They said no situation could keep Julie down, whose motto was "find a happy place."
"She could always turn any situation into something funny," Sones said to the more than 70 attendees.
Kovar was an enthusiastic member of Sigma Kappa, whose sorority sisters, among many others, came to honor her memory.
Even friends who could not physically attend made sure that they found a way to honor Julie's memory.
"I know that as I move forward in life, I will take a piece of Julie with me," read a statement from Sarah Hartzler (junior-elementary education), who could not be present at the memorial.
Kovar's sorority sister and close friend Laura Mishkin (junior-hotel management) said that she will remember Kovar's loving nature and the close bond they shared as roommates. She recounted late-night Wegman's runs, where Julie would buy trail mix -- her trademark snack food -- and encourage her friend to splurge on chocolate.
"Before meeting Julie, I never knew what it meant to have a best friend," she said.
The mourners sat in silence as pictures of a smiling Kovar, set to Sarah McLachlan's "I Will Remember You," were shown in a slideshow. As the service concluded, friends hugged close together and wiped away tears. A line formed to write memories and words of support in a memorial book for Julie's parents.
Rabbi Nosson Meretsky led the memorial, reading passages from the Torah and recounting parables.
"Please pledge a good deed to Julie," he told the assembled crowd. "Every good deed brings comfort to her soul and her family."
