Graduation from the Sacred Heart Academy arrived in 1985, when she left the school behind with a scholarship to Boston College. Kristen studied at Boston College for only a short time before receiving a scholarship that took her to study in Holland. When she returned home, Kristen took a year off from school and worked in a Buffalo hospital as a computer programmer, but she decided it was not a job for which she really cared. She then decided to attend the University of Minnesota.
It was at the University of Minnesota that she became most active in the Humanities Department. She majored in Women's Studies, but she was also fond of, and good in, the field of English/Writing. It was during her years at the University that Kristen marched on the White House, became active in getting extra campus security, and even counseled rape victims. She was definitely very much an activist.
Some of the most noble stories come from her years at Minnesota: Kristen was part of the RSVP (Restore of the Sexual Violence Program) which offered a crisis line, counseling services, and training in self-defense programs. The RSVP was begun in 1985 by University officials, under the pressure of the students, due to the unnecessary abundance of campus rapes. When cuts in funding for the program were initiated, the RSVP came into action. After being ignored, and after realizing that the administrators continued to be in denial about the sexual violence programs the campus was undergoing, the RSVP staged a raid (a "sit in") in University Hasselmo's office in February 1989. (Kristen was designated as the RSVP contact person by Hasselmo in 1990.) Kristen also took part in the annual 24 Hour Rape Free Zone, which, in 1990, took place in Coffman Memorial Union Plaza. Kristen was quoted in the Minnesota Daily as saying the goal was "to draw attention to violence brought against women on campus and in the world." As only one of a few results of the combined efforts of the RSVP and other humanities departments, there is extra lighting and extra security on the Minnesota campus.
Kristen left college before she graduated. She felt she still had too many credits to gain, so she graduated herself. One can seriously doubt that while thinking about and admirably fighting for women's rights, Kristen would have foreseen that roughly three years later she would be playing bass in a relatively well-accepted rock band.
In the early 90's, Kristen decided to join Joachim Breuer and Matt Entsminger to form the band, Janitor Joe. In 1993, Janitor Joe released their first major album on the Amphetamine Reptile record label. Big Metal Birds, as the album was called, signified Kristen's aggression into the rock field. The band gained an ample following, and the album received honorable reviews. "...Big Metal Birds is a roar of disgust and anger to quake the foundations of complacency...one of those records you PLAY LOUD..."Melody Maker; May 1, 1993. Kristen enjoyed her part of songwriting and playing the bass.
During the year of 1993, Janitor Joe was beginning to make a name for themselves. While playing clubs in California, Kristen was spotted by Eric Erlanson and Courtney Love, who were looking for a new bassist for Hole. They invited Kristen into the group, but she declined the offer. At that time, Hole had just recently signed to a much larger label, Geffen Records, and they had previously broke into the rock world with their debut album, Pretty On The Inside. Kristen knew she had a good thing going with Janitor Joe, but eventually agreed to join Hole as a temporary bassist. After the completion of her only album with the band, Live Through This, which was recorded in Atlanta, Georgia, she decided to stay on as a permanent member, a decision that was hard to reach, but supported by all. She then decided to move from her Minneapolis home to Seattle, Washington to be closer to her new band, Hole. Live Through This was already gaining publicity (although it wasn't released yet) and Kristen started posing for pictures, talking to writers, and making television appearances. Soon, Hole had recorded the Live Through This's first video, "Miss World". Everything seemed to be coming up roses. As all of these things were happening around her, and to her, though, Kristen was becoming more and more immersed in the Seattle drug scene.
No one knows when she began using heroin, nor do they know how bad or maybe how not-so-bad her use of the drug was. But Seattle has come to be known for their "cappuccino's and heroin." Kristen knew she had to get out of Seattle, and she had already moved back to Minneapolis in February 1994. She had began to rebuild her strength and happiness. She even temporarily rejoined Janitor Joe for a European tour while Hole awaited the release of their album Live Through This. However, all that happiness took a twist when Kurt Cobain was found dead on April 8 of 1994. And that's where Kristen's story ends.....
Kristen had highly admired Kurt as a musician, and the effect it took on her personally was only a scrape compared to what it would do to the band as a whole, especially with the focus being diverted to Courtney Love. Live Though This was released two days before the band found out about Kurt and Courtney was turning her grief and anger into work. Though Courtney was definately the most affected by Kurt's suicide, Kristen took it pretty hard as well and she told the Minnesota Nightly on May 10, 1994, that Kurt "broke her heart". Only two months later, the newspaper ran another Kristen-related article, and it was titled; "Kristen Pfaff Broke Our Hearts."
In June of 1994, Kristen had gone back to Seattle to pack up the things that she had left behind when she had moved back to Minneapolis. Her U-Haul was packed out front of her King County apartment. Eric Erlandson, lead guitarist for Hole and very good friend to Kristen, slept in another room while she went in to take a bath. The next morning, June 16, 1994, Eric awoke and knocked on the bathroom door to make sure Kristen was alright....but she didn't answer. After a while, Eric became worried and kicked open the door. He found Kristen's body, slumped over the bathtub. Next to the tub was a cosmetic bag, containing syringes and drug paraphernalia. She had died during the night, a victim of a heroin overdose. She was only 27 years old. This death was a fact which often obscures the overwhelmingly positive, inspirational, and creative qualities of her life. By all accounts, Kristen wanted to escape the tragedy of addiction and drug culture. In fact, on that very day her van was packed and ready to drive back to Minneapolis to revitalize her life. But what happened in that bathroom that night in June is Kristen's most devastating secret.
Though this event caused much pain and suffering for everyone, Kristen's family members and friends, including her friends in Hole and Janitor Joe, have gone on with their lives. Most admirably has been the crusade by her mother Janet, a member of the Partnership for a Drug Free America. Ms. Pfaff has made many appearances in the New York area since Kristen's death. She uses her tragic loss as a motivation to help people realize how important it is to stay away from drugs. She mostly speaks to young people, and she sees many Hole and Nirvana fans in these crowds. Along with her, she brings her memories, her feelings, her emotions, her advice, and her desire to help persuade and change--quite comparable to what Kristen did during her college years. She also brings literature and scholarship fund applications. Maybe most hauntingly, however, is the physical achievement of Kristen's that Ms. Pfaff brings along with her. To these events, Ms. Pfaff brings her copy of the plaque of the platinum status Live Through This, an accomplishment Kristen never got to see.
