G048 - Ford, Caroline [DECEASED]

[MK Kilmarnock]

DECEASED

Name: Caroline Sariah Ford
Gender: Female
Age: 18
Grade: 12
School: George Hunter High School
Hobbies and Interests: Aviation, travel, woodworking, classical literature, theology, illustration

Appearance: Caroline is often described as having a mousey appearance, though that might be largely because of her stature. She stands at 5'3 and roughly around ninety pounds, having a very slight build. Her skin tone is quite pale and freckled, and she has dark blue eyes. Her hair is ginger and while she had typically worn it quite long, she now sports a short pixie cut as of the GHHS Senior Trip. She has a very slight, oval shaped face with a slightly Romanesque nose.

At school, Caroline dresses quite conservatively and prefers modest clothing, avoiding anything particularly revealing. On the day of the abduction she is wearing a long blue skirt with a faint tartan design, a red v-neck sweater, and a white collared shirt underneath. On most days she wears a bit of jewelry: simple garnet studs in both ears and a silver ring with the inscription "Choose The Right" faintly visible across the band. Any makeup or nail polish she wears is always very subtle, and she makes an effort to avoid anything too attention-grabbing. She wears small, square rimless glasses. In terms of footwear, she typically avoids heels of any kind outside of formal occasions, wearing nondescript brown flats.

Biography: Caroline Ford was born to Ronan and Charlotte Ford of Chattanooga, Tennessee. She has two siblings: twenty year old Reuben, and sixteen year old Chloe. Reuben has currently left Tennessee as a missionary, and currently resides in Hiroshima, Japan. Ronan is a professional carpenter by trade, and runs a successful restoration business; Charlotte is a neonatal nurse. Their extended family is quite large, and primarily reaches back to Utah and Colorado.

The Ford family are very devout followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Faith has been an integral part of their lives both as a social nexus and a spiritual guide. While open about their faith, they have strongly adhered to the notion that Christ is an example to follow and that honoring God was best done through action (rather than mere proselytization). From an early age, Caroline spent a considerable amount of time helping her parents with various charitable causes as well as through their church. Ronan focuses his efforts mainly with housing organizations like Habitat for Humanity where his skills are best applied; Charlotte spends what little free time she has helping to fund-raise for various international aid organizations.

For most of Caroline's life, she has been a fairly introverted person. As a child, she preferred the company of books to other children, and didn't respond well to most kinds of physical activity. This isn't to say that she wasn't at all outgoing or talkative; she would frequently insist on informing others of interesting things she had discovered in her literary pursuits. Caroline was the sort to memorize facts from textbooks far beyond her level, or poems she found particularly beautiful. While her aggressive insistence to speak at length on what she had read often annoyed other children, her natural talent for academia seemed like a godsend.

Caroline's parents had struggled for years to help their son succeed academically; while good-natured and naturally charismatic, Caroline's older brother Reuben suffered from a serious learning disability. Though he would turn his grades around by the final years of high school, his difficulties demanded a great deal of attention from their parents.

In contrast, Caroline practically sailed above her peers from grade school all throughout high school, maintaining a high grade average with virtually no exceptions. This was easy to understand if one caught a glimpse of Caroline's study habits. It was difficult to find her at any given time with her nose outside of a book. Most of her socializing outside of the Church was in study groups, or spent at the library with her few close friends. Though her parents always refer to her as Caroline, she has two nicknames - Caro to her siblings, and Carrie to friends.

Her heavily structured life does include a few notable extracurricular activities. Caroline's uncle is a private aviator who owns a small flight school at which she has taken flying lessons for many years, having recently earned her pilot's license. Caroline has often remarked that the only time she really seems to completely relax is in the air, and she makes an effort to spend as much time as she can behind the controls of a plane. Often she takes family members on flights, as her parents have given her strict instructions to always travel accompanied by someone. Through this connection, she has also been able to travel all over North America during the summers and holidays. Her passion for travel stems from her instinctive need to learn and catalogue all that she sees, and she keeps an extensive diary filled with notes from each journey. In doing so, Caroline has honed her skills as an amateur illustrator and has a talent for sketching various scenes she witnesses or envisions.

Caroline has long held an interest in classical literature and philosophy. As a child she often complained that many of the books she had been told to study were far too easy. A particularly cheeky librarian had handed her a copy of The Count of Monte Cristo, assuming the thirteen year-old would find it an insurmountable challenge. Caroline did find it a challenge, though not for long - the complexity of the old prose immediately enticed her. Of particular interest to Caroline is the intersection between literature, philosophy, and theology - holding the works of Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and Kierkegaard close to her heart. She doesn't relegate her literary interests to old works though, and is just as likely to be seen reading something by Cormac McCarthy or Stephen King as she is Alexandre Dumas.

Given her father's trade, Caroline has also spent some time learning carpentry. Her father is as much a practical tradesman as an artisan, and she has mostly taken to it as a creative outlet. Caroline appreciates the meticulous nature of woodworking, and enjoys creating masks and small animal sculptures with an attention to fine detail. She often gives them away as gifts to friends and family.

Caroline's faith has never really been in question. While others might go through the motions of their given belief system in deference to their families or peers, Caroline is what one might call a true believer. She takes the Mormon Word of Wisdom almost literally, going well past simply avoiding alcohol, caffeine, and tobacco; she practices vegetarianism strictly outside of high holidays. Elder members of her congregation often see her as a conduit to the younger generation, as she is seen to be exceptionally dependable and honest. Caroline goes above and beyond in the study of her faith, cultivating an interest in religions outside of her own to gain perspective. This is generally well-regarded, as study of other religions is seen as a virtue among the LDS Church.

That said, her zeal is somewhat notorious even among the members of her own congregation, and this has created something of a rift between Caroline and others around her age. If anyone could be expected to rat on others for breaking rules of any kind, it is Caroline. This behavior isn't encouraged by her elders; rather, an innately strong sense of justice and a desire to do the right thing at all times.

This has been the cause of some degree of friction between Caroline and her younger sister, Chloe. Chloe is a naturally rebellious and restless person, and Caroline often finds herself in the position of a watchful guardian in spite of the small difference in age between the two of them. Chloe also is far less devoutly religious, which is an almost constant rift between her and the rest of her family. As someone who has no trouble following instructions and meeting expectations, Caroline finds it extremely difficult to relate to those with the instinct to break them.

Her goals in high school have largely been directed at maintaining her extraordinarily high grade average, so as to keep as many potential options open for post-secondary education as possible. Depending on which scholarships she may be eligible for, she had been considering a career in medicine. Looking to combine the values of her faith and her passion for travel, she is interested in working for a Non-Governmental Organization, providing medical aid to those who need it most.

For the most part, Caroline relegates social interactions at school as a kind of secondary priority, only going out of her way to get to know people when she feels she can spare the time. Naturally kind, she understands that it isn't necessarily fair to people to develop a friendship if she is unable to commit time and energy to it. Where she does find the time, Caroline enjoys participating in school functions and going out with the few friends she does have. Her insistence at avoiding situations where she may encounter drugs and alcohol (and those who use them) is often a major obstacle at meeting new people. Those who are close to Caroline primarily know her through study groups or various charity drives in school, in which she is often a major driving force.

While Caroline has maintained a façade of being extraordinarily keen and capable, she has been suffering a steep decline in her academic performance in the last year of high school. Where typically she would rise from bed early in the morning every single day, she has been missing classes in the morning by sleeping straight through several alarms. In spite of sleeping far more than she ordinarily would, she spends most of her days fighting off exhaustion. It was believed at first that Caroline was suffering from a sudden onset of clinical depression; this has proven not to be the case.

While she was once exceptionally stoic and composed, she was now displaying uncharacteristic emotional volatility; flying into hysterics at the slightest personal misstep or mean-spirited diatribes at those she considers to be shirking their own responsibilities. Though she still managed to meet many of her obligations, it wasn't long before her faltering performance both within and outside of school became difficult to ignore.

Caroline confessed her difficulties to her parents after one particular outburst, revealing that she had been dealing with some difficulties throughout the summer as well, and that they had only intensified once the stress of her senior year set in. They sought professional medical treatment, as well as a radical overhaul of her high-stress lifestyle. At first, Caroline added regular regimens of formal therapy to her schedule, which had been forcibly lightened at the request of their family doctor. However, it was discovered after a short time in therapy that Caroline's problems were far more serious than initially anticipated. After examining her journal at Caroline's own request, her therapist came to the conclusion that she was likely suffering from some kind of severe psychosis.

After a period of intense examination including a brief absence from school, she was diagnosed with Undifferentiated Schizophrenia. Her illness manifests in auditory and visual hallucinations, incoherent speech, paranoia, delusions, and an extreme emotional disaffectation.

This revelation was shocking and extremely troubling to her family, as well as being extremely difficult for Caroline to cope with. After a brief stay at an inpatient care facility, she was allowed to resume her studies under careful and close observation. While under observation, Caroline demonstrated little inclination to self-harm though she did display a troubling degree of antipathy towards her own physical well-being. She is currently seeing significant improvement with twice-daily doses of Geodon, an atypical anti-psychotic.

Caroline no longer walks home, now receiving rides every day from her father. Additionally, she attends a schizophrenia support group every week. Though the diagnosis had shaken her, Caroline sought refuge in her faith; as far as she is concerned, spiritual guidance is as much a part of her recovery as medical treatment. While her spiritual guides are careful to avoid making therapeutic suggestions, she does find comfort in their assistance with prayer and questions on theological perspectives of mental illness.

As a result of her diagnosis, Caroline has been unable to fly with her Uncle for some time; this has been particularly hard on her, and she avoids discussing the topic if at all possible.

Though she initially resisted the suggestion on account of the social stigma associated with schizophrenia, she eventually relented and accepted the help of a peer aide. The school staff believed another student could help her stay on top of things in her final year. Caroline suggested Regina Petrov, as she'd shared a few classes with her and had come to know fairly well. Regina seemed to Caroline a kind and caring individual, and someone she trusted to not hold her mental illness against her. Though Caroline's condition is now common knowledge to most of the school, Regina's example has dissuaded much of the ostracisation and bullying that Caroline had feared.

Currently on a steady course to treat her disorder, Caroline now finds her symptoms manageable enough to be approaching what her academic performance was prior to her illness. She didn't imagine she would be attending the senior trip, but was encouraged by both her parents and Regina to see what kind of arrangements could be made. After a long discussion with the school staff, it was decided that Caroline could attend the trip supervised by a teacher chaperone, and would have to check in nightly with Ms. Garcia.

Given that she is responding well to her treatment, the general opinion among the staff and Caroline's family is that she won't have any significant difficulty looking after herself on the trip, and may actually benefit from a well-deserved return to normalcy. Caroline does feel some trepidation, but the trust placed in her by her peers and the adults in her life have imbued her with a sense of confidence and excitement towards the senior trip - and life, more generally.

With the end of her high school years fast approaching, Caroline continues to struggle to focus on her once crystal-clear goals. She is currently considering taking a year to work either at her church or elsewhere, to focus on saving money for post-secondary education and to look after her mental health. While she had been interested in international medicine for some time, she is well aware of the high-stress environment of medical school, and is seriously concerned about the impact that her illness will have on her career path.

Advantages: Caroline is an exceptionally intelligent person, with a nearly eidetic memory. As an active member of her community, she is used to working within teams and demonstrates a natural inclination towards leadership. Religious belief is a guiding force in Caroline's life, and a pillar of strength in stressful situations. Her zeal and belief in divine providence may buffer her against feelings of hopelessness or despair.
Disadvantages: She possesses very little physical ability, with negligible stamina or physical strength to speak of. She suffers from a severe, debilitating mental health condition which will more than likely be agitated by situations of extreme stress. She also has difficulty empathizing with those whose personal values are at odds with her own beliefs, potentially sabotaging possible alliances. Caroline's faith is unshakable, and her hope in the face of adversity may eventually prove foolhardy. Should she suffer a psychotic break, she may place little regard for her personal safety or that of others.

Designated Number: Female student No. 048

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Designated Weapon: Textbook of safe and edible plants

Conclusion: I HEAR VOICES IN MY HEAD, THEY COUNSEL ME, THEY UNDERST- ow, Josie, what the hell? Ugh... fine, I'll stop. Okay G048, your strengths and weaknesses are clearly defined. You've got a bad draw violence-wise, but maybe you can put it to some good use to keep energy up until you can get your hands on something to quiet down the cries for violence, huh? - Dennis Lourvey

DECEASED