Sunflowers are known for turning toward the light. 30 years after the death of George Mason women's lacrosse and soccer player Aimee Willard, her story continues embody this characteristic of her favorite flower – not because of the tragedy that ended it, but because of the people who have refused to let darkness have the final word.
                                                  
A native of Brookhaven, Pa., just outside of Philadelphia, Willard was known as a natural athlete. Originally recruited to George Mason to play on the women's soccer team, she added lacrosse in her sophomore season and became a star.
 
An All-CAA Team honoree in both sports, Willard was also named a 1996 IWLCA South All-Region 2^nd Team selection and still holds six top-10 records in the George Mason women's lacrosse record book.
 
In June of 1996, the summer before her final year of college, Willard was driving home from seeing some friends in the city. She never returned home. Her car was found running on the side of the highway, and her body was found miles away the next day. While the community rallied around the Willard family, Aimee's murder went unsolved for nearly two years.
 
Finally, in 1998, DNA evidence led investigators to Arthur Bomar, who had previously been imprisoned in Nevada for 11 years of a life sentence before being released early. He was convicted and sentenced to death for Willard's murder. His case ultimately helped inspire federal legislation aimed at holding states accountable when violent offenders are released prematurely.
 
In the last 30 years, Aimee's friends and family have memorialized her legacy in many ways. In 2000, President Bill Clinton signed the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act, better known as Aimee's Law. The law penalizes states that release violent sexual predators or murderers prematurely. States that released the violator risks losing a portion of its federal crime-fighting and prevention funding. While no law could undo the loss of Aimee's life, her case sparked lasting change.
 
In 1997, George Mason Athletics added the Aimee Willard Commemorative award to be presented annually at the end of year student-athlete awards banquet. The award was to be given to the George Mason student-athlete who best exemplifies the standards of quality set by Aimee: intensity, consistency of purpose, achievement, and teamwork. 30 student-athletes have received this award, including two women's soccer players and five women's lacrosse players.
 
The George Mason women's lacrosse program has especially kept Aimee Willard's legacy close to their heart. Current head coach Kara Mupo says Aimee's presence is still felt in the program today: "Aimee Willard's legacy lives strongly within our program. As we continue to pave the way for the future of Mason Lacrosse, we are guided by the values she embodied—unwavering intensity, consistency of purpose, achievement, and teamwork. Her values inspire our student-athletes each day to become the best versions of themselves, in hopes that they too can leave a lasting impact on those around them. We take pride in carrying her legacy forward and honoring her spirit in the way we compete, support one another, and represent our department and university."
 
This year, a group of Aimee's former teammates have started a campaign to redo the George Mason Lacrosse locker room and dedicate it to Aimee – forever cementing her legacy in the lives of all future Patriots who walk through those doors. For more information on the fundraising campaign, click here.
 
"Aimee's legacy lives on," said her mother, Gail Willard. "For everyone to get behind this effort [to name the locker room after her] 30 years after her death speaks wonders for the person she was and how she continues to inspire others. What a gift she had."
 
Thirty years later, Aimee Willard's story continues to turn toward the light—not because of how it ended, but because of the lives she continues to touch. Through scholarships, legislation, annual awards, teammates who still tell her story, and future Patriots who will walk through a locker room bearing her name, her legacy remains rooted in the same qualities that defined her life: intensity, consistency of purpose, achievement, and teamwork.