The Klein community raised more than $10,000 in a couple of days on a GoFundMe, made to help support the family of Mairim Pagoada a senior, who passed away over winter break.

Pagoada went to Honduras to visit her grandparents when tragedy struck. . On Sunday, Dec 30 at 2 a.m. Pagoada, was in an SUV with her friends when it slammed into a bridge and fell into the river bank below. She was the only one in the vehicle who did not survive the crash.

“I had the idea to make the GoFundMe, because we felt hopeless if we could help in anyway, and we thought the GoFundMe was just one of the ways we could help ease the financial burden,” graduate Natalia Arizmendi said.

Many of Pagoada’s loved ones expected for the fundraiser to get as much as traffic as it did because of the impact she left on others.

“I expected for the GoFundMe to raise as much money as it did, because everyone loved Mairim, so I knew people would want to help by donating,” senior Brianna Marroquin said.

One way that she will be remembered is happy—she had an enthusiastic personality and always had a beautiful smile on her face.

“She was always smiling and giggling, always had a positive attitude,” Marroquin said. “She was such a giving person—she always had such a big heart.”

Pagoada strongly influenced her friends to be strong, in a way that has guided them to get through such a hard time

“She taught me how to be strong,” Marroquin said, “During my rough times she would help me with my problems and always make me look at the positive side, she always had my back.”

As the community mourns the loss Pagoada, her memory lives on, Marroquin said.

“We will never forget Mairim, she will always be in my heart forever,” Marroquin said, “Everyone is going to miss her so much.”