Photo courtesy of Emily FarmerPeople who knew her spoke of her selfless and loving nature above anything else.
Surabhi Rao - Features Editor
features@insideuab.com
“To be honest if anything, the way she treated others is probably how we should all treat each other. Just imagine what the world would be like if that were true — I think that to myself all the time,” said Trevor Hauenstein, friend of Molly.
Molly Wilson was a senior, double majoring in psychology and neuroscience with a minor in philosophy. She was a resident assistant at Blount Hall, an involved member of Active Minds, a member of the Philosophy club and a volunteer at Crisis Center.
Wilson, age 21, died on Friday, Sept. 30.
Her signature greeting was “What up, fam?” Molly was well-known for this phrase, as she was known to go out of her way for the Blazer family that she believed in.
“It was raining outside, and I was in my wheelchair on The Green,” said Tim Alexander, a UAB alumnus.
“I heard someone yell from across The Green, ‘Tim, you good?’ I had no clue who it was, but I replied ‘Yeah!’ I didn’t even know her, but it was Molly. She ran over and said ‘I got you, fam’ and wheeled me over. ‘Hold on now, I don’t wanna push you off!’ After she helped me, she ran off to her class or wherever she needed to go.”
Former resident assistant Spencer Porch reflected on his time with Molly, as he designed the image that many students have shared on Facebook as their profile pictures to represent their love for her.
“Molly and I worked together for a year when I was an RA in Blount last year. I can say, without a doubt, that Molly made it much more survivable. I think the one thing that anybody could ever say about Molly is that she is probably the most loving person that you would ever meet. She cares so much. On the way to her funeral, we talked about how if this was one of us, she would’ve been at the funeral home already camped out and ready.”
Molly and her best friend, Brittni Cullifer, met freshman year in their bioethics class and have been inseparable ever since.
“There’s just so much about Molly. She was the most selfless person that I’ve ever met. It didn’t matter if it was 3 a.m. and you called her with a problem. She wouldn’t complain. She would do everything in her power to make sure you were laughing by the time she got done talking to you. In my opinion, she was the heart of UAB. A lot of people know Molly or know of Molly. Every time I walked around with her, she would run off to talk to people and say hey to them. Just by taking the time to say hey to somebody she knew you could see she brightened somebody’s day. She always had a smile on her face.”
She was also known for playing the guitar. She played “Wonderwall” by Oasis often, and rewrote the song to use for her RA application video. Molly liked to play video games and binge watch Netflix with her friends. She enjoyed photography as well as motocross. She would often times go around Birmingham to take pictures.
Molly was a strong advocate for mental health awareness and worked with Active Minds to decrease the stigma surrounding mental health illnesses.
As a friend and president of Active Minds, Emily Farmer spoke of Molly’s work for the organization.
“Molly was a special kind of person. She always had a smile and even though she was struggling herself, she never ever wanted anyone else to struggle. She played an active role in Active Minds to prevent people from feeling the way she was feeling.”
Molly was pivotal in organizing Send Silence Packing Day on The Green in 2015, a traveling exhibit of 1,100 backpacks that were laid out to represent the amount of students that are lost to suicide each year, according to Active Minds, Inc.
“She was just that type of person that was for everybody else. As a friend, she did tell us she did enjoy reducing the stigma of mental health disorders because she herself was depressed,” said Farmer.
“Molly lost a friend to suicide her freshman year of high school. She was just that type of person that she didn’t want people to struggle like she did, and I think that’s why she was such an advocate for suicide prevention,” said Cullifer on Molly’s passion for Active Minds.
“She wanted people to know that there are resources out there, and that you are not alone. She was big on getting rid of the stigma that surrounds mental illnesses.”
A vigil was held on Sunday, Oct. 2 on the Green to celebrate Molly’s life and honor her memory.
Hundreds of students, faculty, family and friends gathered to share a few words about Molly. Tim Alexander held the microphone and facilitated the event, and attendees were asked to talk about her.
The vigil was organized by Alexander and De’Eria Wimbley. Wimbley did not know Molly personally, but was impacted by her death.
“I heard and contacted Tim about tying the event together. We used social media platforms to reach out to students. I had a best friend for eight years who went through the same thing. She was killed in 2011. I’m now an advocate to destigmatize depression. A lot of people think it’s just that someone is crazy or that they’ll get over it, and I know how it feels. The main part is to kill the stigma of mental illness because it is something that is real and it’s important to help,” said Wimbley.
“One of the first things Molly said to me was, ‘If you want to work here at the desk with me, you have to be funny,’” said Darius Armstead, Blount Hall RA.
“You know how people say that you have that one person that is perfect for every situation? That person was Molly. She was just a good-hearted person. She kept everyone happy. What person didn’t want to be a friend of Molly? She was loving, caring, compassionate and sweet. She was that person that everybody was like ‘Damn, she has it together.’ When we finish mourning, this campus will have more Molly’s here to let the light that she shone through them shine again. She touched them and since she’s gone, they are now touching other people,” he said.
