Christie Nguyen, far left in photo, a longtime Santa Fe student and member of Dance Theatre of Santa Fe, died in the series of crashes on I-75 Jan. 29
“The Dance program is just devastated,” said Alora Haynes, chair, Fine Arts department. “The Dance program was like Christie’s family. My phone is ringing off the hook with students asking, ‘is it true?’
“Everybody remembers her as the girl who loved two things more than anything: her son and her dancing,” Haynes added. “She was always smiling. She was a very pleasant person, and so much fun.”
Nguyen, 27, earned an AA and an AS in Business Administration and two additional vocational certificates in business from Santa Fe. She also graduated from the University of Florida. This semester at Santa Fe, she was enrolled in Anatomy and Physiology 2.
“She kept coming back and taking classes so she could keep dancing with us,” Alora explained. “She didn’t want to leave. This was where most of her happiness was. She was like a forever Santa Fe student.”