Editor’s note: This article contains discussions of topics such as death, drug use and overdose. If you or someone you know is struggling with substance use, dial 988 for the National Suicide and Crisis Hotline or the Wellness and Prevention Services Center at 828-262-3180. 

As graduating App State students prepare to say goodbye to Boone, one senior nursing major finds herself beginning her career in the same place where she experienced a significant loss. 

In January, Kirsten Hafkey was offered a new graduate position as a registered nurse at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist medical center — the same hospital where her brother died a year prior.

Espen Hafkey, a 2021 App State psychology graduate, died on Feb. 17, 2024, of a fentanyl overdose. 

On Feb. 11, 2024, Kirsten Hafkey received a call from her mother saying her brother had gone into cardiac arrest and was taken to the intensive care unit at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist. She said she didn’t know how severe the situation was, but she traveled to Winston-Salem the next morning.

A few days later, the family learned he would not recover. 

Espen Hafkey, born in December 1997, faced mental health challenges in recent years. Kirsten Hafkey has memories of sharing inside jokes and laughing with her brother, as they were close.

Espen Hafkey loved music and was a passionate guitarist and drummer. Following his death, the Hafkey family partnered with the Arts Council of Winston-Salem & Forsyth County to accept donations in his honor for the Arts-in-Education Fund, which has served more than 31,000 students.

“That was such an integral part of his life, and that’s something that brought him more joy than anything,” Kirsten Hafkey said. 

Kirsten Hafkey returned to classes and clinicals just days after her brother’s death and received support from her colleagues and instructors. 

Alessandra Densham, a senior nursing major, first met Kirsten Hafkey in fall 2023. Densham said Kirsten Hafkey missed clinical one Friday, and she later learned what happened to her brother.

“I really just tried to treat her as normally as possible, and I made it clear to her that I was there to support her and if she wanted to talk about stuff, I’m here to talk to her,” Densham said.

Densham said the nursing program is fast-paced, making it difficult to take breaks to cope with losses, but their clinical instructor was highly supportive during the semester of her brother’s death.

Angie Koontz, a clinical instructor in the Department of Nursing, said she and Kirsten Hafkey developed a close bond during her time as her instructor.

“We don’t have to say anything to each other. All it takes is a smile, we just know how the other one feels,” Koontz wrote in an email. “We have this amazing, unbreakable bond.” 

Another one of Kirsten Hafkey’s close friends, senior nursing major Madeline Keefer, said she felt connected to Kirsten Hafkey through shared experiences with personal loss. Keefer said she admired her resilience and how she continued to excel in her program despite the challenges she faced.

“She showed up to every single class, she showed up to every single clinical, and was fully present with patients,” Keefer said. 

Kirsten Hafkey began an externship at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist in the summer of 2024. She was later hired as a part-time nurse’s aide before accepting the new graduate position working as a registered nurse in the Neurosciences ICU. 

“It was really difficult, just like walking the same halls that I walked when he was a patient there, and I still sometimes kind of get brought back to that time,” Kirsten Hafkey said. 

Having experienced the nurse-patient relationship from a different perspective, she gained a deeper understanding of patients’ needs. While she is still navigating the grieving process, Kirsten Hafkey said she has become a stronger nurse and has grown more appreciative of her career path. 

She is still inspired by the nurses who took care of her brother and plans to let her experience guide her nursing care for patients. 

“When I’m caring for a patient who’s really sick, or just in a difficult situation, I’m like, this is my purpose, this is why I was meant to be in this situation,” Kirsten Hafkey said. 

She highlighted the importance of addiction awareness and the growing prevalence of fentanyl in society. She said it’s important to look out for one another and ensure people have access to resources that can help. 

“I’m grateful to be able to use something so devastating to help others. I think it would make Espen proud!” she wrote.