A celebration of life service will be held in honor of Abby Nash, a former WKU student who died in December 2023. 

Abby Nash was a senior at the time of her passing, preparing to graduate in spring 2024 with a marketing degree and graphic design certificate. With her time at WKU, Abby Nash was involved in many activities.

“If Abby decided that she wanted to do something, she went all in,” her father, Tom Nash, said. 

She played intramural sports, then refereed intramurals, then transitioned into supervising referees, Tom Nash said. 

In addition, Abby  worked at her apartment complex, the Columns, and was a member of the Cherry Creative staff, as well as working an additional off campus job. 

“She was always busy, she was always active; she loved trying new things,” her mother, Anne Nash, said. 

After switching her major multiple times, Abby was working hard to complete her degree, taking 18 credit hours in the fall 2023 semester, all while managing to maintain a 4.0 GPA and be named to the WKU President’s List, as she had done in semesters previous.

“She was adventurous, and that was all things whether it was school or her activities,”  Anne Nash said. 

Abby enjoyed hiking around in the area and had a regular group of friends she played pickleball with. 

“As soon as she walked into a room and she smiled, her big eyes lit up, and her face lit up,” Anne Nash said. “Everything was good when she was around.”

Anne Nash explained how Abby maintained relationships and connections with individuals of all ages: “It didn’t matter the age, she just connected with people in an easy way.”

While going on college visits, Abby Nash was at Murray State looking at the engineering program, when she wanted to look at WKU since it was in the area. Anne Nash said the minute they stepped on campus, Abby knew that was where she wanted to go.

“She loved the campus, she loved the feel of the layout,” Anne Nash said.

Abby Nash also held close ties with her younger sister, Caitlyn Nash, who is four years younger than her. 

“They were basically twins who are four years apart,” Tom Nash said.

Her parents described their daughter’s big plans for her future, after graduation. She had wanted to move to Eugene, Oregon, to hopefully get a job in graphic design with Nike who is located there. Anne Nash said even though that was her focus, Abby wanted “really anything, as long as it was in the west and doing graphic design, that’s what she was focused on.”

Tom Nash emphasized that mental health is something that individuals deal with, and that there are not enough resources for these individuals. 

“Somehow we need to figure out how we can help change that, increase those resources, and hopefully that’s going to be our legacy,” he said.

Abby’s celebration of life service is being hosted by Tom, Anne and Caitlyn Nash, and is set for Feb. 23, what would have been her 22nd birthday. 

“It’s an Abby focused celebration, it’s all the things she loved, mixed into this party,” Anne Nash said. 

Everyone is welcome from the WKU community, she said. 

The service will be hosted at the Kentucky Derby Museum, and will be casual, including food, drinks and live music by This, That & The Other. 

“We just want to celebrate her and how beautiful and wonderful she was,” Anne Nash said.

News Editor Molly Dobberstein can be reached at [email protected]