Memorial Honors Student

Hundreds gathered in Memorial Church yesterday evening to remember the life of Marian H. Smith ’04, who died Friday in an apparent suicide.

Throughout the somber half-hour memorial service, sometimes interrupted by quiet sniffles from mourners, six speakers reflected on Smith’s vibrancy and outgoing nature.

“She had a sparkling personality with which she could transform the mood of any social setting just by walking into a room with her infectious smile,” said Professor of Anthropology emeritus Evon Z. Vogt, Jr., a personal friend of the Smith family.

Smith’s roommate Angie J. Thebaud ’04 described a fond first-year memory—a moment their friendship crystallized.

“I knew there would be a thousand secrets we would share and a thousand memories we would make together,” Thebaud said.

Winthrop House Senior Tutor Courtney B. Lamberth quoted from some of Smith’s favorite songs, including Sade’s “By Your Side” and Johnny Rivers’ “The Tracks of My Tears,” which Smith would often listen to for hours at a time.

She also recalled Smith’s eagerness to befriend not only students, but also those around her in Winthrop House, like security guard Enoch Kyerematen and several dining hall workers.

“Marian had a way of making those she knew feel that they mattered,” Lamberth said. “This gift for building precious relationships with people was one of the defining things about her.”

Winthrop House Co-Master Paul D. Hanson praised the Harvard community for coming together in a time of mourning.

“A miracle has occured…the love Marian so lavishly bestowed on us seemed to rise again,” Hanson said.

Winthrop House Co-Master Cynthia Rosenberger read the Robert Frost poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay,” which she said was appropriate for remembering a tragically short life.

“In this poem we celebrate Marian’s life but at the same time lament it was a mere 20 years long,” Rosenberger said.

Smith, an anthropology concentrator, would have turned 20 on Dec. 28.

She was raised in Somalia and Luxembourg and had hoped to live in Denmark, her father’s native country.

Her father, who travelled to Cambridge Saturday from France, where the family now lives, came to the service along with several of Smith’s cousins.

All of the speakers urged those in attendance to preserve Smith’s memory. Thebaud said she would never forget Smith, whom she called her best friend.

“As the days and years go on and people forget who she was, there will always be at least one person who will remember her just as vividly and love her just as much,” Thebaud said.

The service was followed by a reception at the Winthrop House Masters’ residence.

The medical examiner has not yet ruled on the official cause of Smith’s death.

—Staff writer Jenifer L. Steinhardt can be reached at steinhar@fas.harvard.edu.

—Staff writer Elisabeth S. Theodore can be reached at theodore@fas.harvard.edu.