Pitkin County Coroner’s office identifies 22-year-old woman in skiing collision

The 22-year-old woman who died from a skiing incident in Aspen was identified earlier this week by the Pitkin County Coroner’s office as Eileen Deborah Sheahan of Illinois. 

She was skiing on Jan. 27 on the Exhibition ski run, an intermediate trail below the Merry-Go-Round restaurant, at Aspen Highlands Ski Resort when she hit a tree. She was pronounced dead at the scene at 12:03 p.m. and was transported to Aspen Valley Hospital by the coroner.

Pitkin County Chief Deputy Coroner Audra Keith confirmed that Sheahan had at one point been in possession of a helmet, but it is not known whether she was wearing the helmet at the time of the crash. The helmet was reported to be found near the tree she hit in the accident.

Keith said her office expects the autopsy results will be available approximately within the next four weeks but anticipates the cause will likely be blunt force trauma.

Sheahan was born in Evanston, Ill., on Nov. 17, 2001, according to her obituary on Legacy.com. She attended grade school at St. Joan of Arc in Evanston and high school at Loyola Academy in Wilmette.

She was a senior at the University of Michigan where she was preparing to graduate in May with a degree in economics. She was said to often comment on feeling fortunate for the opportunity to attend each school because of the many friends she was able to meet along the way.

She is survived by her mother Patricia O’Brien and father Terrence Sheahan, as well as her three siblings Erin, Margaret, and Michael.

“Eileen truly loved life and those fortunate enough to call her a friend. Her love, laughter, and compassion will never be forgotten,” her obituary on Legacy.com states.

A mass funeral was held on Monday at Old Saint Patrick’s Church in Chicago.

To reach Jonson Kuhn, email him at jkuhn@aspentimes.com.