Lauren Grace Liu
As Short Hills, NJ and neighboring towns have been shaken by the suicide of 14-year-old Lauren Liu, Lauren’s family has created the Hope for Lauren Foundation.
The Foundation page reads: “In light of Lauren’s battle with depression and the sadness left in its wake, the Liu family has created the Hope for Lauren Foundation, dedicated to supporting children who are suffering from depression and mental illness, funding clinical and biomedical research for depression, raising awareness for suicide prevention, and supporting families who are suicide survivors.”
Friends of Lauren and the family can leave messages of condolences and memories of Lauren here.
Lauren’s family spoke frankly of her struggles and the loss of their beloved daughter in her obituary, posted on the Ippolito Funeral Homes page:
It is with great sadness that we announce the unexpected passing of our beloved daughter, Lauren Grace Liu. She was 14 years old and was a freshman at Kent Place School. She earned straight A’s in her first trimester and was on the starting line-up on the Varsity tennis team helping them win the school’s first state championship.
Lauren brought so much love and joy in our lives and to those who were around her. She was an incredible skier and loved our annual trips to Snowbird, Utah. Last year, she was doing off trail double black diamonds with chutes. This year, our plan was to ski the Cirque together.
She was a beautiful and passionate dancer exhibiting movements that could move your soul to tears. We can still vividly see her dancing to John Legend’s “All of Me.”
Lauren will always be remembered for her gentleness, grace, and kindness toward others. She always seemed to look out after others and would put others before herself. Since she was an infant, one of our greatest joys was to make her laugh because it truly came from her soul (her “belly laugh” as we called it). Despite her God given gift of bringing love to people, deep inside she was suffering in the darkness, privately battling a deep inexplicable pain. She succumbed to the silent illness of depression and took her own life in our home this past Monday. We know that she is without pain and is now at rest in God’s arms.
Lauren’s complete obituary can be found here.
Donate to the Hope for Lauren Foundation here.
