Wheeler High raising funds in teen's memory | News

MARIETTA, Ga. -- Morgan Lide wanted to see the world. 

It was her adventurous spirit that led the Wheeler High School senior to participate in a study abroad program in Indonesia. But just two months in, the trip ended in tragedy; Lide drowned last weekend as she swam in the ocean with her host family.

Lide was swimming off the coast of Bali, when the group lost sight of her. Lide's body was later found on a beach.

Lori Lide said her daughter was "mature beyond her years."

"For as long as I can remember, she was always volunteering," she said. "Tutoring, books for Africa, going on a mission trip to help orphans in Costa Rica. She was always finding a way to help others."

A National Merit Scholarship semifinalist, Lide already had enough credits to graduate, but she wasn't done learning. Lide wanted to see more.

From a young age, Lide's parents said she loved to travel. Last summer, she applied for the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange Program to study abroad. The "where" didn't matter; Morgan just wanted the experience. Her family says she refused to take the easy route: an English-speaking classroom.

"In Indonesia, the languaga is Bahasa, so she went into the school not knowing anything that anybody was saying," laughed her dad, Chuck Lide.

"She said she was going to come back fluent. And she probably would have," he said.

Despite all of her world traveling, Lide wanted to come back home for college; she hoped to attend Georgia Tech with her big sister, Catherine.

Lide's family wants their daughter to be remembered for her generous spirit and her passion for volunteering. They are seeking donations in her name for one of her favorite causes, the Stretch Mission in Costa Rica, where she volunteered in high school. Anyone interested in giving can do so online under the Morgan Lide Memorial Fund.

Wheeler is selling $5 T-shirts at school to raise money for the Stretch Mission.

The school is also dedicating Friday's basketball game to Lide.