Kathia A. Aurelus

The Hampton University community mourns the loss of Kathia Aurelus, a second-year professional student in the Hampton University School of Pharmacy. Kathia was the baby of eight siblings who dreamed of becoming the first doctor in the family. Those who knew her will tell you that she lived each day in service to others.

Kathia, 30, moved to Hampton Roads from Orlando, Florida, in the fall of 2014 to begin her pharmacy studies and by all accounts she brought the sunshine with her.

Candace Snow-Davis described her dear friend's beautiful spirit. Smiling through tears she said, "Kathia was my little big sister; we carpooled together so I saw her almost everyday. She was a loving and inviting person. She would do anything for anyone. She brought people together. I wish I still had her with me."

Her pharmacy family considered her their cheerleader. Kathia was that student who would take the time to create study guides for her classmates and send texts about upcoming assignments and exams. If anyone in her class was feeling down, Kathia would reach out and lift him or her up.

You could find her acceptance letter framed prominently on the wall of her apartment as a reminder of that first step toward her dream. Dean of the School of Pharmacy Dr. Wayne Harris remembered meeting Kathia during an academic enrichment session. "I can just see her sitting in that room smiling and eating up every bit of the knowledge before her," Harris said.

One of the first vivid rites of passage for pharmacy students is the "white coat ceremony." Kathia, along with a few of her closest classmates, wrote letters to themselves on that special day. The letters described their aspirations. They sealed the letters and promised not to open them until the next rite, the "blue coat ceremony," which marks the transition from classroom studies to actual practical experience. Kathia was just a year and a half away.