Post Falls honors Lexie Haines with purple balloons and memories

Purple filled the sky above the Fields at Real Life as more than 150 people gathered to honor Lexie Haines-Picchione, a Post Falls High sophomore whose death last week left teammates, classmates and coaches grieving together. Students, teachers, parents and friends came dressed in her favorite color, a deliberate break from Post Falls High’s usual black-and-orange identity.

The memorial on June 12 gave the community a visible way to mark a loss that began June 5, when Haines-Picchione, 16, died after a crash on Highway 41 near Wyoming Avenue in Post Falls. Idaho State Police said she was northbound in a 2016 Volkswagen Jetta around 2:30 p.m. when she lost control and struck a traffic light support pole. She was transported by ground ambulance to a hospital and died June 6.

Haines-Picchione’s reach at Post Falls High stretched across the girls basketball and soccer programs, and she also was involved in 4-H. Formerly and in the days after her death, coaches described a student who was hard to miss in the gym. Brian Carlson called her a “program kid” who constantly texted coaches to get into the gym, and said she was a “gym rat” and “a very kind soul.” He also said the team was “wrecked” after learning she had died.

The memorial reflected that same closeness. Assistant girls basketball coach Marc Allert told the crowd that everyone already knew how special Haines was, a sentiment echoed by the students around him as they traded stories, tears and laughter under the balloons. Pastor Matt McLeod told mourners that people may forget what is said, but they will not forget how someone made them feel, a line that drew the evening back to the way Haines-Picchione was remembered by those who knew her best.

Those memories centered on a student friends described as always happy, someone who found the good in things, and as a strong, courageous leader whose smile and laugh stood out. The crowd’s choice to turn the school color palette purple was more than a gesture of style. It made the loss unmistakable, and gave Post Falls High a shared ritual to carry into the days ahead as students continue absorbing the death of one of their own.