Sam Thiel/ Winonan
Leader. Friend. Teammate. Warrior.
These are just a few of the many words that could be used to describe Brooke Baures, who passed away Dec. 1 after a tragic accident at the restaurant where she worked.
Baures was a senior at Winona State University. The 21-year-old from Chetek, Wis. was a social work student and a talented gymnast for the Warriors.
After joining the team in 2011, Baures competed in all four events as a freshman, highlighted with a score of 9.525 on the beam and season-high scores of 9.250 on vault, 9.200 on bars and 9.125 on the floor. She also posted an all-around score of 36.250 against the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and qualified for the NCGA National Championship.
In 2013, Baures competed on the bars and the beam, where she recorded a season-high score of 9.450 on the beam and 9.350 on the bars and earned another trip to the National Championships. There, she placed eighth and earned All-American honors.
Baures was named the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference gymnast of the week twice in 2014 but decided in November to leave the team to pursue a full-time internship in social work.
Coach Beckie Rolbiecki said that Brooke would go far beyond expectations and give it her all while maintaining a positive way of life.
“Brooke’s caring, sensitive and love-of-life personality made her presence impressionable to all who came to know her,” Rolbiecki said. “Her coaches, teammates, friends and co- workers will remember her as the girl who would always go the extra mile to give everything she had toward the common good.”
Baures made a tremendous impact during her time in Winona, both on and off the floor. As a gymnast, Baures was constantly providing encouragement and motivation to her fellow teammates.
“Brooke was a tremendously hard worker and put her heart into everything she did,” junior Brooke Hiestand said. “She would stay after practice and do 5 extra beam routines if that’s what it took to help the team. Before I knew it, I found myself trying to be just like her. She not only brought a spark to the team but also changed the gymnast and person I was.”
Two days after her death, a candlelight vigil was held in Baures’ honor where hundreds of supporters gathered around the alumni gazebo to pay their respects for the gymnast.
“Brooke knew her future career was important to her, and she wanted to give her whole heart to that as well. She did whatever it took to not only be a better person but to help those around her,” Hiestand added. “She truly was a loving person and cared for everyone she encountered. Her love for her family and Joel was so inspiring, and she truly is missed. If I had to describe Brooke in one sentence in what her life was like in and out of the gym it would be giving 100 percent even when you didn’t feel like it and learning to smile through it all. I still can remember when I would be frustrated with a skill in the gym or just having a bad day she would look at me and say, ‘B, smile and fake it till you make it.’”
