Erin was a victim of the Virgina Tech shootings. classmates who barely knew Erin Peterson, 18, could recognize her loud laugh and infectious grin. "She would always put a smile on your face," says a high-school friend, Rachel Dall. "Even if you were having the worst day, one smile and a hello would make you feel so much better."
Ms. Peterson, from Centreville, Va., was a freshman at Virginia Tech. She and another victim of the shooting, Reema Samaha, graduated in 2006 from Westfield High School, in Chantilly, Va., the same high school that the gunman, Cho Seung-Hui, had graduated from three years earlier.
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At Westfield High, Ms. Peterson was captain of the girls' basketball team and was well known for her passion for basketball, her outgoing kindness, and her dedication to her family and faith. She began every game with a prayer, her teammates say, and taught her players to hold their heads high. One former teammate recalls how Ms. Peterson made her feel welcome when she transferred to Westfield High and didn't know anyone.
"She was one of the strongest people I have ever met in my life. She was always ready to support you," says the former teammate, Veronica Sofia Bonilla, a Virginia Tech freshman who attended high school with Ms. Peterson. The two friends moved into Virginia Tech residence halls together in August, on Ms. Peterson's 18th birthday.
A hard-working student, Ms. Peterson did not have a declared major but was interested in political science and international relations, her friends say. She had recently been accepted into an honors fraternity at Virginia Tech, Phi Sigma Pi.
obit devoted daughter of Grafton and Celeste Peterson of Centreville, VA; beloved granddaughter of Woodrow and Bettie Robinson of Purcellville, VA and Vernon Peterson of Chantilly, VA; niece of James G. Peterson, Mary Canady and Denise Robinson; goddaughter of William "Tex" Lloyd; cousin of Zachary Canady, Tracy and Shujuan Littlejohn; and close family friend, Cheryl Lenox. She is also survived by great-uncles and aunts, William and Emily Robinson, Walter and Jean Hogan; as well as numerous aunts; uncles; cousins and friends.
Ms. Peterson, from Centreville, Va., was a freshman at Virginia Tech. She and another victim of the shooting, Reema Samaha, graduated in 2006 from Westfield High School, in Chantilly, Va., the same high school that the gunman, Cho Seung-Hui, had graduated from three years earlier.
photo
At Westfield High, Ms. Peterson was captain of the girls' basketball team and was well known for her passion for basketball, her outgoing kindness, and her dedication to her family and faith. She began every game with a prayer, her teammates say, and taught her players to hold their heads high. One former teammate recalls how Ms. Peterson made her feel welcome when she transferred to Westfield High and didn't know anyone.
"She was one of the strongest people I have ever met in my life. She was always ready to support you," says the former teammate, Veronica Sofia Bonilla, a Virginia Tech freshman who attended high school with Ms. Peterson. The two friends moved into Virginia Tech residence halls together in August, on Ms. Peterson's 18th birthday.
A hard-working student, Ms. Peterson did not have a declared major but was interested in political science and international relations, her friends say. She had recently been accepted into an honors fraternity at Virginia Tech, Phi Sigma Pi.
obit devoted daughter of Grafton and Celeste Peterson of Centreville, VA; beloved granddaughter of Woodrow and Bettie Robinson of Purcellville, VA and Vernon Peterson of Chantilly, VA; niece of James G. Peterson, Mary Canady and Denise Robinson; goddaughter of William "Tex" Lloyd; cousin of Zachary Canady, Tracy and Shujuan Littlejohn; and close family friend, Cheryl Lenox. She is also survived by great-uncles and aunts, William and Emily Robinson, Walter and Jean Hogan; as well as numerous aunts; uncles; cousins and friends.
Erin was a victim of the Virgina Tech shootings. classmates who barely knew Erin Peterson, 18, could recognize her loud laugh and infectious grin. "She would always put a smile on your face," says a high-school friend, Rachel Dall. "Even if you were having the worst day, one smile and a hello would make you feel so much better."
Ms. Peterson, from Centreville, Va., was a freshman at Virginia Tech. She and another victim of the shooting, Reema Samaha, graduated in 2006 from Westfield High School, in Chantilly, Va., the same high school that the gunman, Cho Seung-Hui, had graduated from three years earlier.
photo
At Westfield High, Ms. Peterson was captain of the girls' basketball team and was well known for her passion for basketball, her outgoing kindness, and her dedication to her family and faith. She began every game with a prayer, her teammates say, and taught her players to hold their heads high. One former teammate recalls how Ms. Peterson made her feel welcome when she transferred to Westfield High and didn't know anyone.
"She was one of the strongest people I have ever met in my life. She was always ready to support you," says the former teammate, Veronica Sofia Bonilla, a Virginia Tech freshman who attended high school with Ms. Peterson. The two friends moved into Virginia Tech residence halls together in August, on Ms. Peterson's 18th birthday.
A hard-working student, Ms. Peterson did not have a declared major but was interested in political science and international relations, her friends say. She had recently been accepted into an honors fraternity at Virginia Tech, Phi Sigma Pi.
obit devoted daughter of Grafton and Celeste Peterson of Centreville, VA; beloved granddaughter of Woodrow and Bettie Robinson of Purcellville, VA and Vernon Peterson of Chantilly, VA; niece of James G. Peterson, Mary Canady and Denise Robinson; goddaughter of William "Tex" Lloyd; cousin of Zachary Canady, Tracy and Shujuan Littlejohn; and close family friend, Cheryl Lenox. She is also survived by great-uncles and aunts, William and Emily Robinson, Walter and Jean Hogan; as well as numerous aunts; uncles; cousins and friends.
Ms. Peterson, from Centreville, Va., was a freshman at Virginia Tech. She and another victim of the shooting, Reema Samaha, graduated in 2006 from Westfield High School, in Chantilly, Va., the same high school that the gunman, Cho Seung-Hui, had graduated from three years earlier.
photo
At Westfield High, Ms. Peterson was captain of the girls' basketball team and was well known for her passion for basketball, her outgoing kindness, and her dedication to her family and faith. She began every game with a prayer, her teammates say, and taught her players to hold their heads high. One former teammate recalls how Ms. Peterson made her feel welcome when she transferred to Westfield High and didn't know anyone.
"She was one of the strongest people I have ever met in my life. She was always ready to support you," says the former teammate, Veronica Sofia Bonilla, a Virginia Tech freshman who attended high school with Ms. Peterson. The two friends moved into Virginia Tech residence halls together in August, on Ms. Peterson's 18th birthday.
A hard-working student, Ms. Peterson did not have a declared major but was interested in political science and international relations, her friends say. She had recently been accepted into an honors fraternity at Virginia Tech, Phi Sigma Pi.
obit devoted daughter of Grafton and Celeste Peterson of Centreville, VA; beloved granddaughter of Woodrow and Bettie Robinson of Purcellville, VA and Vernon Peterson of Chantilly, VA; niece of James G. Peterson, Mary Canady and Denise Robinson; goddaughter of William "Tex" Lloyd; cousin of Zachary Canady, Tracy and Shujuan Littlejohn; and close family friend, Cheryl Lenox. She is also survived by great-uncles and aunts, William and Emily Robinson, Walter and Jean Hogan; as well as numerous aunts; uncles; cousins and friends.
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