Crockett was a songwriter and pianist herself. She posted her original song “Angel All Along” to YouTube from the hospice in early October.

“I was always struck, for somebody who struggled with life-threatening illness, she wasn’t absorbed with her own condition,” Boes said. “She wanted to make the world a better place ... What was really inspiring was the way that she lived her life.”

Chad R. Cannon ’11, a close friend of Crockett, recalled a peculiar incident in Harvard Square one day. A man who was homeless had overheard Crockett talking about her dogs, and the man, who had a dog himself, tried to give Crockett a bag of dog food to take home.

“She was able to inspire such charity—even from a homeless man,” Cannon said.

In an email to The Crimson, Pforzheimer House Masters Nicholas A. Christakis and Erika L. Christakis ’86 recalled that in her Harvard application essay, Crockett had written that she hoped “to leave something behind, some accomplishment that will have a long-lasting effect on the world, even after I’m gone.”

“Emily did just that,” the House Masters wrote. “Her gift was teaching us how to live.”

Crockett is survived by her father Walter and brother Jackson.

A calling hour will be held Friday at 5 p.m. at Nordgren Memorial Chapel in Worcester. Her funeral, which Walter called a “musical celebration,” will be held on Saturday at 11 a.m. at the United Congregational Church in Worcester.

—Julie M. Zauzmer contributed reporting to this story.

—Staff writer Xi Yu can be reached at xyu@college.harvard.edu.