McKayla Wall lived life to the fullest.

A kind, loving soul who loved music and people, she was taken too soon.

McKayla was just a few months short of graduating from Tamaqua Area High School, where she was involved in band, chorus and drama, when she died from a pulmonary embolism.

A scholarship in her name keeps her memory alive.

Thirty-six other Tamaqua Area seniors, who like McKayla display kindness, empathy and community involvement in their lives, have been awarded the scholarship to follow their dreams.

Helping other young people seemed natural, her mother, Lauren Wall, said.

The community rallied around the Wall family following McKayla’s death, and continue to support the fundraisers that keep the young woman’s warm, caring spirit flowing throughout the region.

This weekend, a basket raffle and bingo at the West Penn Fire Co. will help raise funds to continue the scholarships awarded each year since her passing in 2018.

People will have the opportunity to “shop and drop” from 11 to 4 p.m. Saturday, viewing some of the 350 prizes available - including a 55-inch television, an outdoor fire pit, zero-gravity lounge chairs - and taking a chance or two, Wall said.

On Sunday, the doors open at 10 a.m. with “shop and drop” until 1 p.m., when the cash bingo begins, she said. Baskets and prizes will be awarded after the bingo, Wall said. Bingo tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door.

Food and baked goods will be on sale, and there will also be a 50/50 drawing, she said.

Friends and family continue to support the fundraising by donating prizes and helping to prep the baskets each year, Wall said.

Another fundraiser, giving a nod to McKalya’s love of music, will be McKayla’s Musical Moments festival, a live entertainment event Nov. 18 at the Elks in Tamaqua, she said.

For tickets or more information, call 570-778-6140; 570-668-4121 or 570-788-0418.