Lauren Hill became a star without trying to. Just the way she put up her fight with brain cancer and did her best to being awareness of it and be the poster child for it was inspirational enough. The 19-year-old freshman basketball player at Mount St. Joseph University died at a hospital Friday morning, the co-founder of her foundation The Cure Starts Now said. Even though that is very sad news, she did things on her terms and her way and that is something to smile about.

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“Through Lauren’s fundraising and advocacy efforts, she not only became a spotlight on the lack of funding for cancer research, but she most certainly has become a beacon guiding researchers for years to come,” The Cure Starts Now co-founder Brooke Desserich said.

Hill wouldn’t let an inoperable brain tumor dictate her final days. Along the way, she became known simply as Lauren, someone who knew how to make the most of every day and who had a knack for encouraging others to do the same by the way she persevered.

A year and a half ago, Hill was just another high school student getting ready for college. She decided to play basketball at Division III Mount St. Joseph in suburban Cincinnati — soccer was her favorite sport, but basketball became her selling point.

A few weeks later, she started experiencing dizziness while playing for her high school team in nearby Lawrenceburg, Indiana. Tests found the tumor. Treatment didn’t work. She knew she had less than two years left.

While the tumor squeezed her brain, Hill squeezed back, holding onto life as tightly as she could. Living every day as fully as she could. She became dedicated to raising money for cancer research and treatment and determined to show others what it means to treat each sunrise as a precious opportunity.

“I’m spreading awareness and also teaching people how to live in the moment because the next moment’s not promised,” Hill told the AP after one of her team’s 6 a.m. practices. “Anything can happen at any given moment. What matters is right now.

Lauren helped raise close to $2 million dollars for further research on brain cancer.

To read the full story about Lauren, click HERE. Rest In Peace Lauren and our prayers are with her family and friends.