Lakota community grieves five student deaths this year

Student deaths

LIBERTY TWP. — When a student dies, the entire Lakota Local School District is affected.

And administrators — who often are involved in funeral preparations and other efforts to provide assistance to the family— say four deaths in four months and a total of five this school year has the Lakota community reeling from grief.

“It’s been really a sad year,” Freedom Elementary School Principal Sabrina Hubert said. “Unfortunately, we’ve seen more than our share of students passing away, whether they were current students or former students.”

With any death, district spokeswoman Laura Kursman said the Lakota community, and especially principals, come together to help.

“You can tell by their actions our principals really care about the kids and really care about the community, she said. “At that moment in time (when a student dies), the principal’s job becomes more.”

After Lakota East sophomore Sodanny April Phann died, many administrators reached out to the family.

“We feel the loss personally,” Cherokee Elementary School Principal Jennifer Forren said.

And when families allow principals and staff to help, she said it brings comfort to those serving.

Wyandot Early Childhood School Principal Elizabeth Spurlock said while she grieves each loss, her heart especially goes out to the children’s families.

“When I look back at this year, even though that was horrific, the kindness (the Phann) family showed to me, I’ll always remember,” she said. “They allowed us to be close to them. They allowed us to be a part of their lives.”

When Wyandot kindergartner Paige Alessandro died in May, Spurlock said staff members gathered in the gymnasium to cry, pray and support each other.

“Because she had such an amazing spirit, she motivated the teachers every day,” Spurlock said. “If you find joy in children, you love children. That’s what makes a difference, and that’s what gets us through all of this.”

But the image of Paige’s father wearing a pink tie — her favorite color — at the funeral is a memory she won’t forget.

“That image is etched in your mind forever,” she said. “That beautiful family... They’ve got to go on without that little girl ... That void is going to be there.”

The heartbreak for the families fuels a strong desire to do everything possible to help, she said. But it isn’t just Lakota employees reaching out.

“Our community is rising to the occasion and the core piece of that is love,” she said. “People start showing true compassion and love for each other.”

When Freedom Elementary School fifth-grader Arun Chatterji died May 22 from cancer, many parents went to the family’s house to landscape its yard Hubert said.

“That’s the type of families we have here at Freedom that really rally around and support each other,” she said.