Christina Irene Alarcon  (7/16/1981 - 3/4/2006)

Christina, born on July 16, 1981 in the back seat of a Volvo wagon, was the youngest of five children. She was very intelligent and creative,  but she was never a stellar student.  She was a free spirit who marched to her own drummer, so it wasn’t surprising that she had no interest in the traditional track of going to college immediately after high school.  She wanted to do something different than her four older siblings who graduated from DePaul, Notre Dame, Georgetown, and Whittier.  She chose instead to enter the workforce.  She took a few courses here and there, but clearly had no interest in school. She worked at Qwest where her boss immediately recognized her leadership skills and potential, and strongly encouraged her to go back to school.   She then realized the importance of a college degree and was ready for the challenge.

Christina was attending Regis University and was on track to graduate in December 2007 when she died on March 4, 2006 at the age of 24. She had just registered for the new quarter, and asked her dad to buy her books because she was too sick to go out, but was worried she wouldn’t be prepared for her new classes.  We brought a laptop to the hospital so she could do her school work while she was there, not realizing the severity of her illness. Christina was determined to finish what she had started.