Sophomore Lilly Bova always lit up whatever  room she was in, one of her closest friends, sophomore Madilynn Mendoza, shared. When Bova, Mendoza, sophomore Laila Milanovic, and their other friends were getting ready for homecoming together, Bova would dance along to the music playing in the room and lift everybodies spirits up, Milanovic said. Bova was always the life of the party at every event, both girls said.

On Saturday, March 28, Bova tragically passed away at home, according to an email sent from Principal Dr. Barbara Georges. Her funeral was held on April 11 at N.H. Scott & Hanekamp Funeral Home where the family said their final goodbyes to their very beloved daughter. Police are still investigating what happened and looking for a suspect, according to WGN-TV.

While they are still dealing with the loss, Bova’s friends looked back at their time with Bova and reflected on how she radiated positive energy which always brought up everyone around her, senior Ben Meyer shared.

“She never was really in a bad mood,” Meyer said. “She always was happy and outgoing and always put herself out there.”

Bova always came to class smiling, never complained, and cared enough to take the time to put in effort and participate, senior Jaima Devine, one of Bova’s PE leaders, explained. Bova was able to talk to anyone and always make friends, Devine said.

“She was just this little angel that always came to class,” Devine said. “She was so nice to talk to. Anytime I talked to her, it literally made my day so much better.”

Bova left her kind spirit with Milanovic and showed her how to always spread love and bring people up.

“She was the kindest soul to ever walk this earth,” Milanovic shared. “She was so loud and energetic, and there’s no other way to describe her but perfection in a person.”

Bova’s friends hope people will keep her memory and spirit alive and remember her for the kind, energetic person she was.

“She was never rude to anybody,” Mendoza said. “She never picked sides. She was there for everyone all of the time. She made everything happy.”