College of Arts and Sciences freshman Beatriz Ponce, a Caracas, Venezuela native who friends described as lovable and energetic, died early yesterday morning after being struck by a car while crossing the street to her residence, the Hyatt Regency hotel in Cambridge. She was 17.
An international relations major who dreamed of becoming a lawyer, Ponce had just begun classes a month ago at Boston University and was considering joining the Pre-Law Society. Her friend, Chiara Cortez, also a CAS freshman, met Ponce during the international students’ orientation over the summer and stayed close with her during the school year.
“She was the epitome of happiness,” Cortez, who was with Ponce the night of the accident, said. “She brought joy to everyone around her, no matter how she was feeling.”
Cortez said Ponce was an advocate for gender equality and enjoyed sports, particularly tennis.
Another friend, CAS sophomore Hugo Juarez, was also with Ponce on Tuesday night and said they had an intramural soccer game at Nickerson Field in West Campus.
“She loved to hang out with friends,” he said. “She was social, very social. I don’t think you’ll find anyone at BU with bad things to say about her.”
College of Communication freshman Lynn Franco met Ponce at orientation, bonding with her over their shared language of Spanish and homes in Latin America.
“She was always very, ‘Hi! How are you!” Franco said. “She was a cheerful person, very true.”
Franco and Juarez said family and friends met at the Catholic Center on Bay State Road last night. Her parents flew in from Venezuela yesterday morning.
Juarez said a “massive text-messaging” campaign notified friends of the gathering, many of whom were too distraught to talk about the incident.
Hyatt Office of Residence Life staff held a meeting at 7 p.m. in the hotel’s Thomas Paine Room to inform students of the tragedy and provide a forum for discussing the emotional impact of Ponce’s death. Outside the meeting last night, on the Hyatt sidewalk along Memorial Drive, where Ponce was hit, two bouquets of flowers commemorated her life.
Isabella Glaser contributed reporting to this article.