The Illinois Democrat posted a heartbreaking statement that his eldest daughter, Gwen Kasten, went to bed Sunday night and never woke up.
“There are no words to describe the hole in your heart when a child dies,” the MP said in a statement of himself, his wife and his second daughter. His office announced Gwen’s death in a brief statement Monday, but gave no further details at the time. In new details, Casten’s spokesman narrated the night before the teenager’s unexpected death. He said Gwen, Kara’s wife and Audrey’s youngest daughter were having dinner together as a family that night and then Gwen went out with friends for a few hours. After returning home, she said goodnight to her parents, texted a friend to make sure she got home well, and went to bed. He never woke up. Casten said the only thing he and his family knew about her death was that it was peaceful. Spokesman Casten announced the unexpected death of his daughter on Monday night. Sean Casten for Congress / Facebook “And the only lesson we can learn from this is to enjoy the moments you spend with your loved ones,” he said. “We want purpose. We want to believe in a brighter tomorrow. “But the only thing we can control is our present.” Gwen planned to start college at the University of Vermont in the fall to study environmental science, Casten said. The 17-year-old was passionate about music and, like her father, activism. He played the trumpet in the Downers Grove North high school jazz band, the wind band and the pit band in the Mary Poppins spring production. Gwen Casten was going to study at the University of Vermont. @ RepCasten / Twitter Gwen also set up an “Empowerment Club” at her school after being inspired by student activists after the Parkland shooting, Kasten said. The club became one of the largest in the high school and dealt with issues such as the prevention of armed violence, environmental protection and the LGBTQ alliance. Through her partnership with the club, the teen helped enroll age-old students to vote and organized Black Lives Matter rallies.
According to her Twitter biography, she served as co-director of the March For Our Lives Illinois chapter. She also appeared in a campaign video in support of her father, who is running for a third term in Congress. “If her light seemed a little brighter than most, it was because she was so generous in reflecting the light and love that so many gave her,” Casten said of his late daughter. Spokesman Casten shared that his daughter went to bed on Sunday night and never woke up. CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images Just 10 days before her death, the conference member proudly acknowledged his daughter’s work by organizing a “Stop the Bleed” training at her school in a television interview. Casten and his family thanked everyone who approached them for their condolences and support. “To anyone who asks what they can do, we just ask you to live your life like Gwen’s,” she said. “Enjoy the moments. Use every ounce of energy you have to ensure a better, more tolerant, more generous, more affectionate tomorrow. “Not because you know your tomorrow will come, but because you know that someone else’s will.”