“Becca always was a huge dreamer, but she wasn’t someone to let them stay dreams,” Cheyenne Gaspar, a close friend of Rebecca Harvey, said.

As a WSU alumna and a woman with a dynamic personality, Gasper said Rebecca was honest and wore her emotions on her sleeve.

On the morning of Oct. 22, Rebecca, 23, died in a car accident on her way to work when she crossed the centerline and collided with a Chevrolet pickup on state Route 17, just north of Othello. The passengers in the pickup were unharmed.

Rebecca, described by friends as an integral part of the WSU community before she graduated last May, never passed up an opportunity to get involved and help others.

Richard Harvey, Rebecca’s father, said his daughter had a passion for everything she engaged in.

He explained that Rebecca could always step up when needed, specifically in one instance when she had to stand in for WSU President Elson S. Floyd.

“There was some kind of reception the Cougar Connectors were going to have, and President Floyd was going to speak, but he was a few minutes late,” Harvey said, while laughing. “Someone turned to Becca and she had to come up in front of everyone and speak until President Floyd got there.”

Harvey described Rebecca as being a bundle of energy while growing up, and always involved in sports.

Rebecca was also involved in the Cougar Marching Band for her freshman and sophomore year, fostering her love for music.

Shaunna Baldyga, Rebecca’s sister, said she played the mellophone. Before college, she was an active part of Central Valley High School’s marching band and a part of the Spokane Thunder Drums and Bugle Corps, a nationally competitive marching band.

“Music was definitely her passion,” Shaunna said.

Lanae Anderson, a close friend of Rebecca’s, said every job Rebecca had at WSU always came with the goal to help others.

“With her job as a Cougar Connector she helped people come to WSU and feel the same sense of community she felt,” Anderson said.

In the area of resident life and recruitment, Rebecca was a Resident Adviser (RA) for two years, was the director of finance for the Resident Hall Association (RHA), worked as an orientation counselor for a year, and was a Cougar Connector for the Office of Student Affairs and Enrollment.

Rebecca also worked for the Carson Center, was an ambassador for the College of Business and an assistant coordinator for the Compton Union Building (CUB).

“I would just hope that she knows that everyone around her has been impacted by her, and she made a difference in everyone’s lives,” Anderson said.

Gaspar said Rebecca originally went to WSU to study pharmacy, and then switched to finance.

She had just started as a management fellow at Columbia Basin Healthcare Association in Othello. She wanted to spend her career in the administrative side of healthcare.

Brian Richter, another close friend of Rebecca’s, said her goal was to work in a fellowship position for a few years, and then hopefully move up into more administrative work.

Spending time with friends was also important to Rebecca, even with all of her commitments, Richter said.

“She always put school and work ahead of social life, but she did have a social life–she had a good balance,” Richter said.

Richter said Rebecca loved just spending time with friends getting coffee or sharing a meal. He remembers her witty sense of humor, her passion and her caring nature. 

“She could talk to anyone and find something to talk about,” he said.

Anderson said looking forward, Rebecca wanted to move into recruiting for the Columbia Basin Healthcare Administration.

“Wherever she was going to end up she was going to end up helping people,” she said.

A memorial service open to the community will be held for Rebecca at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 2, at Millwood Presbyterian Church in Spokane, Wash.