Remembering Kim Perez
by Whitney Harrelson
April 2007
It is a strange feeling realizing Kim is no longer with us. Not just in another part of the world, only to connect back again shortly. I keep thinking I see her on the street, but then the wind changes and she’s gone.
I close my eyes, and I can see Kim dancing. She’s dancing in traditional African wear with a headdress. There are lots of people around, but it’s dark, and she’s just twirling around and around with a beaming smile on her face, and her eyes are closed. It is like that wind has filled in her sleeves and she is at peace.
Kim was a very dear friend of mine at the Fletcher School. We started the same year, both feeling the weight of the goals we had set for ourselves, and knowing we were starting on new paths. We took our time there seriously in the hope it would equip us to achieve greater understandings of life’s complexities, and enable us to more effectively make a difference where we wanted to most.
I would often pick Kim up to go to the library together, where she would zone into her earphones and be immersed for hours. She believed deeply in her studies, and knew she was there for a purpose and it wasn’t going to be easy. She was willing to put in the time necessary to produce a report, document or paper she could feel proud of.
Kim embraced all parts of Fletcher, and most especially the cultural activities where she just shined. We had cultural festivals of sorts that highlighted different parts of the world. I will never forget the Africa one where Kim just had a light within her when she participated in the fashion show while in a long, beautifully multicolored dress from the region. You could tell how much it made her soul happy just being among the region’s music, food and people.
I was overflowing with joy when Kim told me she got into her PhD program, and all the incredibly interesting work she would be doing. She was putting her entire self into that effort, and I knew she would excel. The memorials of her from her school though just blew me away…she had accomplished so much more than even I knew.
It saddens me and also makes me ponder to realize there was so much to Kim I learned after her passing. She had so many layers, so much to give, and always was learning…she has passed on to me so much to think about and treasure in life. She was as genuine as they come. So true to her beliefs and unwavering in her commitments. A true friend who could talk and listen for hours. She knew what was important in life, and how much time is wasted on things that are not.
I saw a picture recently of her while she on her last trip, just sitting on a stone wall, staring out over the ocean that had taken so many people to slavery so many years ago. The look on her face will forever stay with me… She wanted to know why things are as they are, and wherever she could, she would try to make them better.
There will never be words to describe the impact Kim has had on my life. She became a part of me at Fletcher, and I am so blessed to have known her. Her words and her example will always inspire me. I will continue to talk to others of my dear friend, Kim, who is dancing somewhere to the beat of an African drum.