By Barbara Morrison
Editor-in-Chief &
Maria Hodgins
Multimedia Editor

Westford is still coping with the death of senior Olivia Marchand. On Monday, February 1, 2010 her father fatally shot her, shot and wounded her mother Jody Marchand, and then took his own life. Jody Marchand survived and is recovering at UMASS Memorial Medical Center in Worcester.

In the wake of such a tragedy, friends of Marchand have been focusing on her life and her “fun loving, easygoing and caring” attitude.

All WA seniors Nicole Kibblehouse and Stephanie Benowitz, close friends of Marchand, did was laugh as they reminisced about their favorite moments with Marchand.

“It was always an adventure with her,” Benowitz began by saying.

Kibblehouse smiled as she recalled a time when Marchand had helped make light of a difficult situation. One occasion involved a fight with her mom in the Westford Academy school parking lot.

“She thought I was skipping school,” laughed Kibblehouse, “Liv made it that much easier because she was like, ‘don’t take it seriously.”

Kibblehouse said that this memory was like so many others from Marchand’s life; Kibblehouse and Benowitz spoke at length about how she could be easygoing about the most intimidating of situations, helping her friends to calm down.

“There was never a situation she wasn’t optimistic about,” said Benowitz.

At the candlelight vigil that Westford Academy seniors participated in during school on Thursday, February 4, Kibblehouse talked about how excited Marchand was for the future, especially attending the University of Vermont.

Other students used this opportunity to tell their favorite stories about Marchand, making the crowd of otherwise somber students laugh and smile.

St. Catherine’s church in Westford and Westford Academy held services in her honor on Saturday, February 6. Kibblehouse made a memorable speech and spoke about her friend’s upbeat outlook on life.

She was passionate about horseback riding and it showed in the way she cared for her horse. Benowitz smiled as she recalled how lovingly Marchand had braided her horse’s mane.

Both Kibblehouse and Benowitz stressed how close Marchand and her mother, Jody, were. They said that on many occasions Marchand would sacrifice a Friday night out to make sure her mother was not lonely. Kibblehouse admired that Marchand would invite friends to come with her and her mother to see a movie at their favorite theater, Chunky’s.

Kibblehouse said that Marchand’s constant efforts to make sure those around her were comfortable and happy did not end with her mother.

“We were with all these people that I didn’t know, but she made me feel like I knew all of them,” said Benowitz about a concert they went to with Marchand’s friends from Littleton.

Indeed, friends of Marchand speak a lot about how relaxed she was around new people and how her friendliness was something they will remember her by.

At the candlelight vigil at Westford Academy and an impromptu student gathering in the Performing Arts Center afterwards, students and friends of Marchand shared all they had learned from her life.

Kibblehouse said that one thing she has learned from Marchand is that you cannot have the attitude that you already know who a person is based on his or her exterior.

“Liv knew you could figure out who someone is if you ask them the right questions,” said Kibblehouse.

Benowitz said that Marchand has taught her to cherish those around her and to live your life with passion, as she said Marchand always did.

“We all think that we’re invincible, but, really, every day counts,” said Benowitz. “Everybody will cherish everyone so much more… Kids who I stopped saying hi to in the hallway, I say hi to again.”

Kibblehouse agreed that she has already changed since Marchand’s death, saying, “I thought that would never happen, but the fact that it did happen makes me look at life differently.”

This entry was posted on Friday, February 12th, 2010 at 6:44 pm and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.