FAYETTEVILLE -- Her daughter was happy in her brief time at the University of Arkansas, said Jan Marrs.
"She was happy with her house, her school, her grades, her boyfriend," Marrs said, describing the final weeks in Ashley Lane Marrs' life.
Police found the 18-year-old freshman lifeless Sept. 16 in the backseat of her vehicle at a Fayetteville motel, the death ruled a suicide by the Washington County Coroner's Office. The report was released Friday.
Before enrolling at UA, Lane, as she was known, received treatment for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, Marrs said.
"We view it as a medical illness. It's like getting cancer. It's something you need to talk about and need to address," she said.
The Marrs family, who live in the Kansas City, Mo., area, began raising money for suicide prevention efforts after their daughter's death. They plan to give about $20,000 to UA, Marrs said, with the gift to help students through counseling available at UA's campus health center.
The family -- Jan, husband Jeff and 15-year-old daughter Carlie -- also have raised money to help an organization called Speak Up, based in Kansas City, to bring speakers to schools for discussions on suicide prevention.
Before enrolling at UA, Lane Marrs survived an attempt at suicide, Jan Marrs said, but was doing better with treatment. She was a pledge at the Alpha Omicron Pi sorority chapter at UA.
"They were a wonderful support to her during the time she was there," Jan Marrs said.
At UA, "she felt she could stop taking her meds," Marrs said, attributing the decision to a college student's overconfidence and a desire to stay awake for study sessions.
The financial gift to UA will help students who might see finances as a reason for not continuing with counseling, she said.
"As we've discovered in the last year or so, it's very pricey, even with good insurance," Jan Marrs said.
She added the Alpha Omicron Pi sorority has also been working on suicide prevention at UA.
The key is helping those with depression or dealing with trauma open up about their problems, she said. Her daughter eventually disclosed she had been raped before her junior year of high school, Marrs said.
"Seek out help. Don't hide it," Marrs said, adding, "don't think you can just get over it and will it away."
NW News on 01/14/2017