Hundreds remember ‘vibrant life’ of Maine West teen
Bright hues of pink, purple and green replaced the traditional dark clothing of mourners at a memorial service Saturday for Stephanie Valusescu, who died this week after a two-year battle with cancer.
Hundreds of friends and family members gathered at St. Emily’s Catholic Church in Mount Prospect to honor the life of Stephanie, who had just turned 18 and would have graduated from Maine West High School this year.
Her mother, Jihwi, had requested that those attending wear Easter colors, said Gregg Belgard, youth minister at the church. “They are the colors of new life,” he said.
In her eulogy, longtime friend Claire Groener said Stephanie had “18 years of a vibrant life.”
“It seems unfair that when we all need her most she’s not here to hold us. She always knew the right thing to say.”
Stephanie, who lived in Des Plaines, was diagnosed with brain cancer as a sophomore but continued to attend class and tried to keep up through her junior year. “She was never afraid,” Groener said. Even when she was limping, and with a paralyzed arm, she would go to church with her mother each Sunday to show her faith.”
Though Stephanie was not able to attend school this year, her friends stuck by her, Belgard said. “They would all just sit over there and talk with her for hours on end. They wanted to let her know what was going on,” he said.
A tearful Rachel Quinn, 17, of Des Plaines, remembered her friend as supportive and said she will miss her smile and great advice. The two were cheerleaders together at Maine West.
Dozens of friends lined up after the service to pin pictures on a cork board and leave flowers, notes and remembrances for Stephanie’s family, which also includes her father, Stephan, and older brother, Bruno. In addition, posters filled with pictures of Stephanie with friends and family were placed up front during the service.
“The pictures can’t even begin to tell you all about Stephanie, or what she’s meant to her family, her friends, her school,” the Rev. Ron Navoy, pastor at St. Emily’s, told the mourners.