Mila Rainof, a 1999 graduate of Santa Monica High School, died in New Haven, Connecticut on April 20 of this year. She was a fourth-year student at Yale School of Medicine, after having completed her undergraduate studies at Stanford University.
She expired the day after being struck by a sports car as she was crossing a busy New Haven intersection, her view obstructed by a large truck. According to the Yale Daily News, Rainof sustained severe head injuries before being rushed to the hospital. She was 27.
Rainof was the salutatorian of the Samohi Class of 1999. A scholarship fund had been established to honor her memory. Donations should be made payable to Santa Monica High School Scholarship, with the notation “In memory of Mila Rainof” on the check, and mailed to:
Santa Monica High School Scholarship Fund
Attn: Stacy La Duke
601 Pico Boulevard
Santa Monica, California 90405
Mila Rainof double majored in English and biology at Stanford. Following her death, the Stanford Daily published a tribute written by Kelley Fong, a portion of which is re-printed here with the author’s permission:
Friends described her as sincere, friendly and compassionate. “She was one of the sharpest, smartest, kindest people I have ever met,” said Jean Shi ‘03, Rainof’s freshman roommate in Otero [Hall]. “When people talk about meeting ‘soul mates’ in college who change their lives, she was absolutely that for me.”
Rainof had been planning to go into emergency medicine, with a residency at Alameda County Medical Center’s Highland General Hospital Department of Emergency Medicine set to start in the fall.
“She was so excited to be going back to California for her residency,” said Amanda Silverio ‘03. “She loved medicine and even stayed in New Haven to do extra rotations while her classmates had gone on vacation, because she had so much to give. Patients always loved her.”
An Tran ‘03, a close friend, remembered Rainof as witty and generous, with an easy laugh and a love for both medicine and literature.
English Prof. Jennifer Summit, Rainof’s adviser in the English major, remembered Rainof well, calling her advisee “a treasure.”
