Danville Native's Crew Team Raises Money For Boat In Her Memory

DANVILLE, CA — The Cal women’s rowing team is raising money to buy a boat in honor of their teammate Shawn O’Donnell, a Danville native who was killed in July while cycling in Washington, D.C. after a truck attempting to make a right turn did not see her.

O’Donnell, 40, was a foreign service officer working for the State Department, and had previously worked for the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. She had recently celebrated her 40th birthday by hiking Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa.

She was described as an active and energetic linguist and world traveler who spoke multiple languages and had visited over 50 countries. During her time with the State Department, she received a Group Meritorious Honor award and two Group Franklin Awards.

“The world lost out on Shawn because she was a bright light who had so much more to give and so much more to live,” her mother, Danville resident Mary O’Donnell, told The Washington Post.

When Cal’s Class of 2004 crew team heard about her death, some of them were reunited for the first time since graduation. Now, they’re banding together to raise $50,000 to purchase an eight-person racing shell in her memory. In the world of rowing, naming a boat after someone is considered a tremendous honor.

A boat is also named for O’Donnell’s father, who was also a former rower and passed when she was younger.

The team has already raised $25,000 from 90 people. They hope to raise the remainder by Jan. 1 so that Shawn’s boat can be raced in the spring.

“There is nothing that can fill the void that Shawn’s family and friends feel in the wake of her passing,” former teammate Andrea Sanders said in a statement. “However, there is a way that Shawn’s love of adventure and desire for a challenge can live on. That is through the dedication of a boat in her name.”

Visit shawnsboat.com for more information and to donate.