BENZONIA -- Katherine Wolterink no longer walks the halls of Benzie Central High School, but her influence remains.
Students fondly remember the former English teacher's humor, and fellow teachers still think of her when crafting lesson plans.
"We go, 'What would Kathy think about this,' and that's something we always consider in our discussions about curriculum," said Renee Osgood, who taught with Wolterink for seven years.
Wolterink, 60, of Traverse City, died in a car crash Sept. 24. A sport utility vehicle driven by John Lee Burchett, 26, crossed the center line on Benzie County's Cinder Road and slammed head-on into her vehicle, police said.
Her death left a major void in the Benzie Central community, students and staff agree; but healing has begun.
"At first, a lot of us were in shock about it," sophomore Parker Nugent said. "We still always talk about the fun times we had with her ... it really helped a lot of us cope with it."
The crash severely injured Burchett, who spent more than a month in the hospital. He was charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing death, driving with a suspended license causing death and third-offense drunken driving, but he hasn't been arrested.
Police weren't sure Burchett would survive, Benzie County Undersheriff Rory Heckman said, and they didn't want to pour time and money into caring for him in jail. Burchett now lives at home and is wheelchair-bound, but he is expected to be arrested within a week.
"He'll have his day in court like everyone else," Heckman said, adding that Burchett isn't considered a flight risk.
Wolterink's family has been strengthened by support from their church, community members and the school district, said her husband, Charles Wolterink, but times are still tough.
"We're coping about as well as one might expect," he said. "It's still very difficult sometimes."
Several memorials to Wolterink are brewing at the high school, and some are already in place. The school's basketball teams wear a small ribbon in her honor, Osgood said, and there's a push to have a portrait of her hung in the library.
A garden with memorial plaques for Wolterink and other deceased students and staff will be built at the school soon. The memorial was conceived a few years ago, Osgood said, but Wolterink's death served to push plans ahead. Nugent helped design the garden.
A new teacher now occupies Wolterink's old classroom, and studies are back to normal. But Wolterink won't be forgotten.
"She was a leader in that department," Principal Pete Olson said. "We're having a difficult time picking up the pieces."
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