Ashna
Wagle
Ashna Wagle was born May 11th, 2000 — with the most curious eyes and a gentle nature that carried her through life. From a young age she had a deep passion for learning. Science was particularly fascinating to her, and she received her B.S. in Molecular Biology with a minor in Chemistry from Trinity University in San Antonio, TX.
She loved tutoring students, working with peers in the lab, and spearheading new research on eye disease. While learning was one of her passions, her community meant the most to her — volunteering at Children's Hospital of San Antonio and showing up fully for everyone she loved.
In her free time, Ashna loved music, dancing, fitness, and anything outdoors. Later in life she found deep peace in embroidery, painting, and crafts. Her humor and wit — like telling her dad "You've still got it in you, old man" after climbing Mount Olympus together — masked a fierce and tender love.
Just before finishing university, her struggle with Bipolar disorder led to her death by suicide in December 2021 at the age of 21. Ashna has inspired so many lives, and we are fortunate to have her as our guiding light.
Light, joy & love
The genuine joy of having her soul dog with her at college.
Peace and adventure — climbing Mount Olympus with her dad.
Growth and lifelong relationships, chosen right out of high school.
Pride and purpose — spearheading eye disease research.
Laughter and love with cousins, grandparents, and family.
Darkness beneath
She brought him to give herself a reason to get out of bed each day.
Weeks before, she had barely left her room or spoken to others.
She went to "reset her mind" — symptoms were becoming overwhelming.
She used it as a crutch to avoid her thoughts and cope with insomnia.
She insisted on this trip as a way to say one last goodbye.
What's important to us is to show how there are two truths to mental illness. There is light, laughter, and happiness — but there is also darkness, loneliness, and hopelessness. There is not a one size fits all to what mental illness looks like. From our loss, we started The Ashna Project with hopes of learning these variations and spreading awareness — so no one else suffers in silence.
