Darby O'Brien, freshman in interior design, died Friday, Nov. 16, of a brain aneurysm.
O'Brien was a member of Kappa Delta sorority, a member of the Council for Interior Design Accreditation and a member of Grace Church in Greenville, S.C.
Mary Beth Spann, small group leader at Grace Church, said she got to know O'Brien well during the last four years.
"She was just a sweetheart, and she never brought attention to herself," Spann said. "She was very humble, and she babysat my children, and she was great with them, and they loved her."
O'Brien was involved with both her church and community.
"She served with the preschool kids on Sunday mornings," Spann said. "She was also involved with our student ministry."
Other people were greatly affected by O'Brien's faith, Spann said.
"Her life here was a light for others," Spann said. "Just because of her death and hearing her story about her faith a lot of people have been reached."
Marianne Seast, small group leader, said O'Brien was the kind of person everyone wanted to be around.
"She was very positive," Seast said. "She never had anything negative to say about anything."
Seast had known O'Brien for five years through the Bible study group at church.
"We were very involved in their lives," Seast said. "We really just lived life with them."
Ashley Selby, friend of O'Brien's, said O'Brien's memorial service in South Carolina was inspiring.
"Just hearing people talk about how much she loved Jesus so much," Ashley said. "That was one of the things that kept coming up."
Marleigh Selby, another friend of O'Brien's from South Carolina, bonded with O'Brien when they went on a mission trip to the Bahamas together.
"She loved kids," Marleigh said. "She was so good with them. I loved watching her sit playing with the kids and letting them braid her hair."
Marleigh said she is glad O'Brien was a part of her life.
"I am so blessed to have known Darby," Marleigh said. "I feel really honored that I got to be close to her."
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