Family, friends and classmates pack Bauman Auditorium to memorialize the young woman

   People say the true measure of a person’s wealth is the friends they leave behind when they die. If true, Karissa Edwards amassed a fortune during her 20 years on earth.
   Those friends — as well as professors, staff members and the community at large — gathered nearly 1,000 strong in Bauman Auditorium on the campus of George Fox University Wednesday evening for a memorial honoring Edwards’ life. The junior Christian ministries major at the university drowned Nov. 13 in the ocean near the town of Taft during a retreat for resident assistants at the school.
   The event elicited tears and laughter: tears for a woman who died young; laughter because by all accounts Edwards was a fun-loving, larger-than-life character.
   Her polished wood coffin, flanked by cascades of flowers and two floor lamps glowing red, remained the centerpiece for the two hours of religious music, testimonials, scripture reading and praise.
   GFU President H. David Brandt, standing at a podium before a framed portrait of a smiling Edwards, characterized the evening in both somber and joyous tones: “So we come together tonight to celebrate, to remember, to mourn.”
   Beneath a quote from Methodism founder John Wesley that served as the wallpaper on Edwards’ computer, members of the GFU choir sang “We Shall Walk Through the Valley in Peace.” Friends read from Psalms, John and Philippians. The GFU Worship Band’s music raised the gathered from their seats to sing, hands and Bibles stretched to the heavens in praise.
   Although the theme was celebratory, some of Edwards’ fellow students appeared stunned by her death and stared forward blankly as still photos of Edwards flashed across a screen erected on the stage of the auditorium. The photos of Edwards with her family, her six siblings and her classmates, as well as on various service trips, elicited laughs and groans from the audience.
   The theme throughout the slide presentation was one of Edwards smiling back at the camera — always smiling. Steve Edwards characterized his daughter as a happy, though often a competitive (she was a National Bible Quiz champion) young woman.
   “Karissa won every argument with her siblings, even if she was wrong,” he quipped. “She wouldn’t give up.”
   The father, weeping lightly at times, concluded with an admonition to the crowd, saying because his daughter was so devoutly religious and had “gone home to heaven,” she would want her death to bring joy to people as her life had.
   “May we live so close to God in this life that heaven is the next natural step,” he said.
   Gospel Chapel Pastor Steve Jaquith recounted the long list of Edwards’ accomplishments — many in service-related endeavors. “There’s no question in my mind that God has gained a great trophy in Karissa,” he said, adding a challenge to the crowd: “Who tonight will be willing to pick up the Christian mantle?”
   The memorial continued with people, often trembling or smiling, approaching microphones erected at points in the audience. Classmates recounted Edwards’ effervescence; professors remembered her intellect and her penchant for practical jokes; friends recollected her caring manner and genuine regard for their well being; fellow resident assistants spoke of her as a “mighty warrior of prayer.”
   The worship band got the people on their feet. They clapped, they celebrated, they even rocked out a little to the up-tempo Christian song “Blessed Be the Name of the Lord.”
   Religion professor Irv Brendlinger had Edwards in two classes. He praised her intellectual talents, her spirit, her sense of humor and her desire to engage him in complex conversations about faith and religion. “She loved to wrestle with the hard stuff,” he said.
   Campus Pastor Gregg Lamm concluded the memorial saying, as he looked from the podium out toward the hundreds of faces, that he was optimistic that Edwards’ legacy of spirit and service would live and grow. “I have hope here tonight,” he said, “because I have seen the example of this young woman.”

Memorial fund established
   A Karissa Edwards Memorial Fund has been established at Bank of America and is designed help the family with funeral expenses. Remaining funds will be donated to two of Edwards’ favorite nonprofit organizations: Compassion International and The Oaks Christian Camp in Lake Hughes, Calif.