Memorial walk held to remember Faith Hedgepeth

Faith Danielle Hedgepeth had a light, and her family and friends are determined to keep it alive.

About 200 people participated in a memorial walk from the Bell Tower to the Old Well on Saturday — exactly one year after Hedgepeth was found dead in her off-campus apartment.

Walkers carried white carnations and laid them at the foot of the Old Well. The student a capella groups Harmonyx and Unheard Voices performed at the opening ceremony.

Chancellor Carol Folt offered a few welcoming remarks at the beginning of the walk.

“I already know from people that the entire Carolina community grieves for the loss,” Folt said.

“We’re responsible for each other and it’s our duty to keep each other safe.”

Chelsea Barnes , social director for the Native American sorority Alpha Pi Omega and a coordinator for the event, said she was happy the walk gave Hedgepeth’s friends and family a chance to support one another.

“It gave her family an opportunity to come together and the campus to come together to show that we haven’t forgotten,” Barnes said.

One walker, who asked not to be identified for privacy concerns, said she was Hedgepeth’s neighbor in Hawthorne at the View apartments. While she didn’t know Hedgepeth when she was alive, she said she has been involved in the subsequent homicide investigation.

“I fell in love with her immediately as I learned so much about her in those days,” the neighbor said.

The neighbor said detectives from the Chapel Hill Police Department had been by her home as recently as a month ago with more questions. She said she was happy to see the detectives because that meant they were still working on the case.

In the months following Hedgepeth’s death, law enforcement analyzed DNA evidence left at the scene by a man. In January, Chapel Hill police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Behavioral Analysis Unit released a profile of the suspect. The statement said the person might have been familiar with Hedgepeth and lived by her in the past. The suspect would have been unaccounted for in the early hours of Sept. 7.

Police haven’t released any new information about a suspect since January.

During the opening ceremony, a slideshow played with pictures of Hedgepeth. In one, she was wearing a fake mustache and laughing. In another, she was sitting on her father’s lap with a large smile on her face.

Senior Donna Thomas , who met Hedgepeth at the UNC Summer Bridge program, said she wanted to walk to support her fellow Bridgees and show she hasn’t forgotten about the case.

“This case is still unsolved and it’s important to keep it relevant,” Thomas said.

Senior Laura Cooper said she participated in the walk as a way to grieve for the loss of Hedgepeth, who she met during her freshman year.

“Tragedy brings people together, we’re just here to support each other,” Cooper said. “It’s good to see all the people still care. It’s a good way to grieve.”

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