18 Years Ago: The Story Behind Kim and Jeannine's Garden
December 11, 2015 -- Eighteen years ago this week, Pepperdine Law 1Ls Kimberly Dawn Ellis and Jeannine Gregory lost their lives in a head-on collision with a drunk driver. The beautiful Kim and Jeannine's Garden at the entrance of the law school commemorates their memories, and a Kimberly Dawn Ellis Scholarship Fund established by her family is given to first-year Jewish law students. Each year this time, as our current first-years head to exams, we remind ourselves to cherish them and our community.
From a Los Angeles Times story about these two women and the tragedy:
Professor Kmiec said Gregory, a confident, popular, aspiring entertainment lawyer, followed her Michigan boyfriend to Southern California. "She was a leader who didn't campaign for leadership," Kmiec said. "She just had that as a natural quality."
Ellis, he said, was wide-eyed and enthusiastic. She often approached him with questions after class but always prefaced them by asking if she was interrupting him or if he had time for her.