A personal watercraft rider found Yarmolenko lying next to her car along the Catawba River in Mount Holly around 1:15 p.m. Monday, about 2 1/2 hours after she'd last been seen at a coffee shop in the university area.
Police said she died of asphyxiation before they arrived. They said they have several leads in the case, but have not named any suspects and have no motive.
At a visitation Saturday morning mourners quietly sobbed in front of Yarmolenko's casket, where she laid with her hands folded on top of her yellow sleeveless blouse. About 200 gathered for her burial.
Family and friends remembered her as a remarkable woman who was always concerned about others; a woman who would go out of her way to be friendly to everyone.
Sam Hunt, a friend from high school, called her "the embodiment of love."
"She's the kind of person everyone wants to be like," said Kim Harvey, a friend from Connecticut who met Yarmolenko during a summer job in Alaska last year.
"You couldn't have met her for more than five minutes and not loved her," said Coleen Cunningham, a neighbor and the mother of one of Yarmolenko's best friends. "She would do anything to make you smile," said Emily Lybrand, a friend from UNCC. "It's so hard to believe that someone would hurt her."
Yarmolenko's death is the third high-profile slaying of an N.C. college student this year, following those of UNC Chapel Hill student body president Eve Carson and Duke graduate student Abhijit Mahato. Police also believe that another UNCC student, Simrit Gill, was killed Feb. 1 in a domestic violence homicide.
"It's not fair," said Jenna Watson, a friend who went to high school with Yarmolenko.
"She lit up the room when she walked in. I wish there were more people like her."
Memorial and donations
Another memorial service for Yarmolenko will be held next Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to noon, at the Chapel Hill High School auditorium, 1709 High School Road.
The family has established a memorial fund that will be used for programs promoting social cohesiveness and education. Donations to the Irina Memorial Fund may be sent to P.O. Box 1108, Chapel Hill, NC 27514.
