Rebecca Townsend, 17, was asked to make a "bucket list" two and a half years ago. She completed it this month by sacrificing her own life.
The items Rebecca put on her list, for a high school assignment, were:
- Kiss in the rain
- Fly to Spain
- Save a life
She had already checked the first two off her list when on July 2, the Connecticut teen pushed friend Ben Arne out of the way of an oncoming car.
Townsend saved him, but lost her own life as a result.
The two friends were struck by a car while crossing a street near the campus of Western Connecticut State University, according to reports.
When he was released from the hospital, Ben, who sustained serious injuries, visited Rebecca’s family and told them about her heroic actions.
"He said, ‘The last thing I remember is Rebecca pushing me and telling me to hurry up,’" Rebecca’s sister, Victoria, recalled.
After Rebecca’s tragic death, her two sisters and cousins said they found a note lying on her bed, "as if laid out" for them.
It read simply: "For Future Rebecca Townsend," according to the eulogy they posted on a Facebook page they created.
"Apparently, this was a high school assignment that was returned to the kids at the end of their senior year," it reads.
The purpose was so "that the students could remember who they were at the beginning of their high school days."
They read the letter at her funeral and posted the eulogy online. Her sisters referred to the bucket list in their eulogy.
"To my parents, thank you for taking her to Spain," they said.
"To Niko, thank you for being the cute boyfriend she could kiss in the rain. And to Ben, thank you for letting her save a life."
The sisters also encouraged others to share an act of kindness in Rebecca’s memory on the "Remembering Rebecca" page.
"Rebecca was passionate about service work and charities, constantly working to better the lives of others," the online post said.
"Whether paying a meal, volunteering time, or donating to a cause, we all have the opportunity to pay it forward everyday."
NOTE: A 23-year-old woman from Brookfield, Conn., was driving the car, and the accident remains under investigation.