Eight years ago a movie was filmed in our halls, in our gyms, our auditorium, and on our Football Field. The movie recorded on silverwolf territory is about a girl who, like ourselves, was a Silverwolf. The movie is known as Love, Kennedy.
Taken By: Michelle Montierth
Kennedy Hansen, was a student who attended Fremont High School the years of 2013 and 2014. Kennedy battled Juvenile Batten Disease, which is a disease that causes cognitive impairment. She unfortunately passed away from this fatal disease on May 30, 2014.
The Producers, T.C. Christensen and Ron Tanner were fascinated by her story and filmed the movie right here in Plain City after her death. The film was published in 2017.
The movie recaps her life, but, specifically, her high school experiences. Kennedy was a member of our cheerleading team, and supported the school the best she could. In the movie, they highlight these cheer moments in her life.
Looking back in the old yearbooks, the year 2014, puts a dedication to her in the cheer section of the book.
Mattie Linford, a member on the cheer team in 2014, and friend to Kennedy Hansen, shares, “I will always remember this one time when Coach Jill asked her if she thought she had any challenges, and she simply replied, “No. Fun.” It really surprised me when she said that because if she didn’t think she didn’t have any challenges neither should I.”
The producers put this event in one of the scenes in the movie. This acknowledges what type of caring and loving person she was. This scene was filmed in our high school’s small gym.
What’s more interesting about this movie is that the producers filmed the show where the events actually took place.
Digging deeper into the archives of our school’s newspapers an article was written about the filming process in 2016. Former member of The Paw Print, Cooper Brown, puts into his article that, “Fremont has been pulling students back to school for the opportunity to participate on set as extras.”
Taken By: Bri Painter
Taken By: Bri Painter
Brown explains that extras were people from Fremont acting as a background person in the film. Specifically the student body of 2016. Not only were the events taking place at Fremont, being filmed at Fremont, the film makers then involved students who actually went to Fremont.
In Brown’s Article he captured a mural drawn by Audrie Mecham in 2014 at the annual chalk art festival. This mural says, “Kennedy’s Hugs”.
Even reading her Obituary online, her family described her hugs, saying, “If you knew Kennedy, you knew how to love. If you did not know Kennedy, you would learn how to love instantly with a Kennedy’s Hug.” The mural done by Mecham instantly showed that perception into Kennedy’s life.
Mr. Ballsteadt, the Ceramics teacher, had Kennedy in one of his classes, “By the time she got into my class, she was pretty blind (from her condition), although I was still able to get her to make things to take home.” This helps demonstrate that Kennedy was always dedicated to persevering through adversity.
Mr. Ballsteadt also shares a cute story about her, “I remember there was a boy here at school that had a girlfriend, but Kennedy thought he was her boyfriend or decided he was. So he would hold Kennedy’s hand in the halls. She was blind at that point and didn’t realize, but it was kind of cute.” They also put that character into the movie. The boy’s name is Jaden Loftus who was also a student at Fremont. He was her friend and her “Boyfriend” during her time at Fremont.
Kennedy Hansen left her imprint at Fremont as a Silverwolf, and this year marks an eleven year anniversary from her time here. It also marks an eight year anniversary for the movie. If you haven’t seen the movie, it is offered on Amazon Prime, Tubi, and Youtube!
A lot of fascinating people walk through these halls each year, but few are more memorable than Kennedy Hansen. Thankfully, we have a Fremont movie to help remember her legacy.
