<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0QnZij_0vjrF3Md00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0QnZij_0vjrF3Md00" width="1320" height="743" >CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Leah Strickland had her whole life in front of her. The multi-faceted athlete had just started high school before her life was cut short after coming home from a soccer game one night in August.Two years later, her spirit lives on through those who come out to run in Leah's Legacy 5k, an event that her dad Michael Strickland said would have bugged her because she never liked the spotlight."She would hate this. She would hate the attention. She's rolling right now thinking what are they doing,” Michael said.Michael and his wife Emily knew they had to do something to honor their daughter after her death."Right after she passed away we decided that we needed to do something good and positive and came up with the scholarship foundation and then we needed to fund it," Emily said. "Leah was a passionate runner, soccer player, swimmer and we decided to just do it to bring all of it together."Since its creation, Leah's Legacy Scholarship has helped three different Herbert Hoover High School students with college expenses."We pick a graduating high school senior to get a one-time $2,500 scholarship towards qualifying educational expenses for upper education,” Emily said.One of possible next recipients of scholarship, Maysen Fletcher, remembers her former teammate as a kind individual."Leah was a very sweet girl and she always had a smile on her face and she's very active in all her sports,” Fletcher said.Fletcher came in first place during this year's 5k with one goal in mind."My goal was to beat the boys,” Fletcher said.But regardless who won or lost, the real win was for Leah's friends and family to see the impact she had on the world."The people, still two years later, are still here celebrating Leah, and it means the world," Michael said. "This is probably one of my favorite days of the year. As hard as it is, this does a lot for me."</div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

Community gathers to support scholarship in memory of Leah Strickland at annual 5k

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Leah Strickland had her whole life in front of her. The multi-faceted athlete had just started high school before her life was cut short after coming home from a soccer game one night in August. Two years later, her spirit lives on through those who come...