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LakeForestLeader.com NEWS
the lake forest leader | July 19, 2018 | 3
LFA grad fatally shot on anniversary trip in Mexico
Family, Lake Forest
community mourns
loss
Alyssa Groh, Editor
During a vacation to
celebrate her one-year
wedding anniversary, Tatiana
Mirutenko, 27, a Lake
Forest Academy graduate,
was fatally shot Saturday,
July 7, in Mexico City.
The incident occurred
when Tatiana and her husband,
James Hoover, were
exiting a local taco restaurant,
Califa Tacos in Lomas
de Chapultepec. Gunmen
on motorcycle aimed
shots at a man — who
authorities later identified
as a bouncer at an area
bar — when Tatiana was
hit by a stray bullet, according
to a report from ABC7.
The gunmen fled the
scene and the intended
target was wounded, but
survived.
Tatiana’s husband,
Hoover, released a statement
to The Lake Forest
Leader, but could not be
reached for further comment.
“Tatiana was a passionate,
loving, smart, beautiful
woman. She was an
athlete, a foodie, a wino,
a Netflix binge-watcher,
a hiker, a skier, an investor
... the list goes on,”
Hoover said in the statement.
“She had so many
interests and lived with a
vibrant curiosity, which
was one of her best qualities.
She lived life to the
fullest and attacked every
opportunity that life gave
her to grow and develop
herself personally and
professionally. I’ll forever
cherish our talks about life
and career and our plans
to build a family together.
She pushed me to always
do more. Her death was
instant. She did not suffer.
The incident was all
so sudden and surreal. She
had an incredible amount
of life left in her, and the
void that she leaves is
numbing. She was the best
friend and partner I could
have hoped for. I loved her
deeply and will miss her so
much.”
Tatiana, of San Francisco,
formerly of Hawthorn
Woods, attended Montessori
School of Lake Forest
from the time she was
4 years old through eighth
grade. She went on to
spend her freshman and
sophomore high school
years at Woodlands Academy
of the Sacred Heart,
before transferring to Lake
Forest Academy, according
to her father, Wasyl
Mirutenko.
Katie Creed, Tatiana’s
faculty/staff advisor during
her two years at Woodlands
Academy, remembers Tatiana
for her big heart.
“Tatiana had a curious
mind, a competitive
spirit and a heart twice her
size,” Creed said in a statement
to The Lake Forest
Leader. “She approached
writing a research paper
and playing in a volleyball
game with the same zeal
and determination. Tatiana
was always all in. One of
my fondest memories of
Tatiana was witnessing her
commitment and empathy
to a classmate from Korea.
Having just arrived in the
U.S., Tatiana took her under
her wing and helped
her navigate life in a new
country.”
Lake Forest Academy
released a statement on social
media, reading in part:
“LFA community, please
join the family of alumna
Tatiana Mirutenko ‘09 in a
celebration of her life this
“... Her death was instant. She did not suffer. The
incident was all so sudden and surreal. She had
an incredible amount of life left in her, and the
void that she leaves is numbing. She was the best
friend and partner I could have hoped for. I loved
her deeply and will miss her so much.”
James Hoover – Tatiana Mirutenko’s husband on the death of his wife, a
Lake Forest Academy graduate.
weekend. Tatiana was shot
and killed by a stray bullet
in Mexico City last Saturday,
July 7, 2018. ... We
are shocked and saddened
by this terrible news. Tatiana
was a beloved member
of our alumni community.
We extend our deepest
condolences to her sister,
Roma ‘10, and parents,
Wasyl and Natalia
Mirutenko.”
The Montessori School
of Lake Forest did not immediately
return calls to
The Lake Forest Leader.
Tatiana’s father, Wasyl,
said he could go “on and
on” about the type of person
his daughter was and
highlighted a few of her
passions.
“Her focus in life was
family, volleyball, training,
her husband James,”
he said.
Wasyl continued to
emotionally tell The Lake
Forest Leader that Tatiana
was a talented artist who
enjoyed creating sculptures,
sketching people
and using watercolors. She
also shared her love for art
with children.
“She volunteered at Lurie
Children’s Hospital in
Chicago for a while and
helped the children with
the art to try and cheer up
[the children] at the cancer
center,” Wasyl added.
Both Wasyl and Hoover
described Tatiana as a
foodie. Wasyl joked about
the way she would order at
restaurants.
“She dissected menus at
restaurants, and sometimes
it was uncomfortable going
with her to restaurants
because throughout the ordering
process, she would
grill servers on how it was
made and what was in the
food,” Wasyl said.
Among her many interests
in life, Tatiana was the
most passionate and dedicated
to volleyball.
Her dad said she developed
a passion and talent
for the sport when she
started playing club volleyball
at Sky High Volleyball
in Crystal Lake. When
she turned 16, she wanted
to take her skills to the next
level and tryout for Sports
Performance Volleyball in
Aurora. Before trying out,
Wasyl said he told Tatiana
if she made the team he
would be unable to drive
her to Aurora for practices
and she needed to find her
own way there.
After landing a spot on
the team, Wasyl said Tatiana
was so committed to
her training that even as
a new driver, she’d commute
from Lake Forest to
Aurora three to four times
a week during rush hour.
“She played volleyball
and she loved it and
did the best she could,”
Wasyl said. “She was not a
world-class caliber player,
but she loved the game so
much.”
One of her coaches at
Sports Performance, Rick
Butler, remembers Tatiana
as a driven and passionate
person.
“She was a pretty unique
young lady,” Butler said.
“... She was always thinking
and asking questions,
she was extremely intelligent.
While she was going
to have a great volleyball
career, you knew that she
was probably gong to be a
much greater contributor
to the greater good than
maybe a lot of people are.
She was in the gym five to
six days a week for the two
years she was with us. She
was really sharp in a lot of
areas. That is one of the
things that stood out to me
the most, was that she was
going to be good at whatever
she did.”
Wasyl also noted during
her time with Sports Performance,
her team won
the national championship.
She later went on to
play Division I volleyball
at Clemson University,
where she received degrees
in economics and
business.
Tatiana Mirutenko (left)
and her husband, James
Hoover, celebrated
their one-year wedding
anniversary by going on a
trip to Mexico, where she
was fatally shot on July 7.
Photo Submitted.
Wasyl paid tribute to his
daughter’s discipline and
strong work habits to her
coaches at Sports Performance.
“There was no fooling
around there, and the
hard work and discipline
they taught her followed
her the rest of her life,”
Wasyl said. “It is unbelievable
that she lived her life
like that. I couldn’t believe
how disciplined she was. It
was a testament to her and
how hard she worked to
achieve what she became.”
Tatiana leaves behind
her husband James, her
parents Wasyl and Natalie
Mirutenko, and her younger
sister Roma Mirutenko.
Visitation was from
4-9 p.m. Friday, July 13,
Muzyka Funeral Home,
2157 W. Chicago Ave.,
Chicago, with a Panachyda
(Prayer Service) at 7
p.m. in the chapel. The
funeral was at 10 a.m. Saturday,
July 14, at St. Andrew
Ukrainian Orthodox
Church, 300 E. Army Trail
Road, Bloomingdale. Interment
St. Andrew Ukrainian
Orthodox Cemetery.