Student dies in Labor Day car accident
Caitlyn LeClerc had just started an International Studies degree program.
Published Sept. 10, 2010
Caitlyn LeClerc, a student at MU and a second lieutenant in the National Guard, died Sept. 6 from injuries she received in a car accident on her trip back to MU. She was 21 and was returning from a Labor Day vacation at the Lake of the Ozarks.
LeClerc, an International Studies major, began taking classes at MU this fall. Her father, Byron LeClerc said she graduated in 2010 from Wentworth Military Academy. There, she was awarded the Outstanding Company Commander award for individual leadership and service.
Col. Michael Lierman, who worked with LeClerc at the academy, said she was a Military Intelligence officer in the Missouri National Guard.
"She was one of those natural born leaders," Lierman said. "She was very good working with the kids."
Lierman said LeClerc was always willing to do whatever it took to accomplish a goal. LeClerc treated all the women in her company as a mother or older sister would.
"The thing that I remember most about her is the fact that she always had a smile on her face," Lierman said. "She always had a smile on her face and was willing to help other people."
LeClerc graduated from Leavenworth High School in 2007. There, she was a member of the National Honor Society. She was also prom queen and a ROTC drill team commander.
"What a tragedy for this to have happened," Lierman said. "I feel that through the next couple of years, she would have determined what her plans were."
Her father said when she was born she weighed only two pounds. She eventually grew to be 5'2" and 110 pounds. LeClerc was able to do 88 pushups in two minutes. She was born Jan. 7, 1989.
She is survived by her parents, Byron LeClerc and Teresa LeClerc. LeClerc had three siblings: Alex, Thomas and Grace.
Visitation and rosary was Thursday afternoon at the R.L. Leintz Funeral Home. Burial will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, with Rev. David McEvoy. Inurnment will take place at Resurrection Cemetery.
Memorials are suggested to go toward the Wounded Warrior Project.