Hundreds attend wake for Holy Cross star rower killed in Florida crash

UXBRIDGE — Hundreds of people attended a wake on Tuesday for Grace Rett, a star rower at Holy Cross who was killed in a Florida crash.

One by one, mourners stopped by Saint Mary’s Church in Uxbridge to pay their respects to Rett and her family.

“Hundreds of people coming to support the family, something that you don’t see every day and something that I hope doesn’t happen again,” said Renee Leblanc, a junior at Holy Cross.

Although visitors bundled up in their coats, Grace’s teammates wore their jerseys under their layers.

And her Holy Cross classmates wore purple, their school color.

“Really just shows how amazing Grace was and how many people loved her and were around her at all times,” said Emma Dinopoulos, another Holy Cross student.

The 20-year-old member of the Holy Cross women’s rowing team was killed in a crash in Florida during a winter training trip.

Several of her teammates and their coach were also injured.

Rett was a start student athlete, setting records as a rower and her peers knew her as a strong leader.

“She was very kind, she was always nice to people and just naturally a leader, she always wanted to be leading people breaking new records,” said former classmate Johnna Romenek.

“She would come to our games and not only would she come support us we got to support her and her family today, it’s very sad to lose someone from your community,” Leblanc said.

The wake for Grace took place on the same day her classmates at Holy Cross returned to campus to begin a new semester.

"It’s a little dim, not the most ideal situation but we’re making the most of it just by being together," Dinopoulos said.

Funeral services for Grace will be held on Wednesday morning in Uxbridge.

One of her injured teammates, Hannah Strom of Marion, was flown to Boston on Monday to continue her treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital.

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