Recalling ‘Happe’ memories

Amber Willard

LA CRESCENTA -- The dark suits and muffled whispers in the high school

auditorium were a stark contrast to the projected images of a smiling

girl growing into a vibrant woman.

The woman in the pictures Saturday afternoon -- her open-mouthed smile

captured on film the day she graduated from USC -- was found dead in

Culver City Park more than a week ago.

Roberta Happe was kidnapped from the parking garage of her Los Angeles

office Feb. 22 by a man she did not know, police said. Jason Thompson,

arrested in Michigan on Friday, allegedly forced her to withdraw money

from a bank ATM, raped her and then strangled, beat and stabbed her. The

Los Angeles man will be eligible for the death penalty if convicted,

although prosecutors have not yet decided if they will pursue that

punishment.

But the brutal death of the 23-year-old Glendale woman was not what

was remembered at her memorial service Saturday at Crescenta Valley High

School, where she graduated from in 1995. In her honor, a black banner

was draped over the sign at the auditorium’s entrance Saturday.

“Maybe she didn’t always take out the trash or do the dishes ... but

she brought out the best in everyone she met,” said Katie Sullivan,

Happe’s roommate after they graduated from USC in 1999.

Happe moved into her own apartment in Glendale a year ago and had

alternated between staying there and with her boyfriend, Brian O’Rourke,

her mother said.

“If there has ever been a person on the face of the earth with an

appropriate last name, it was Roberta,” said Gary Talbert, who started as

a co-principal at CV halfway through Happe’s senior year, when she was

director of school spirit. Happe’s last name is pronounced “happy.”

“Six years ago this week, I started at CV,” Talbert told the crowd.

“The first student to reach out to me was Roberta.”

When Happe left CV, she gave presents of coloring books and crayons to

a handful of her teachers.

“Dear Mr. Allen, I still hate derivatives,” math teacher Bob Allen

read from the opening passage in his book before propping it up on the

auditorium stage with the others.

Other speakers at the service recalled Happe’s infectious personality,

which co-worker Olivia Hinojosa called a “bucket of sunshine.”

“You loved Christmas because you got to name your tree,” USC friend

Rob Luke said, reading from a list of attributes collected from other

friends. “You loved your friends and we knew it.”

Happe was the only child of Pete and Edie Happe.

“Pete and Edie, look around you,’ said Tim Kelly, a family friend from

Denver, where Happe spent her childhood. The 1,400-seat auditorium was

full, with people standing along the outer aisles. “You gave us something

very precious.”

DONATION INFO

Happe’s parents have designated three groups to benefit from donations

in their daughter’s memory. Donations should be sent to the Roberta Happe

Memorial Fund, Vista Federal Credit Union, 500 S. Buena Vista St.,

Burbank 91521. Make checks payable to the Roberta Happe Memorial Fund and

designate one of the following organizations:

* Crescenta Valley High School, which will use the funds for a

scholarship

* USC, which will create an on-campus memorial for Happe

* Family Resource Center at Frank D. Lanterman Regional Center, where

Happe worked as the center’s coordinator. Funds will be used for an

internship in Happe’s name.