‘A beautiful and well-loved girl’: Haverhill mourns death of 11-year-old student
Precious Wallaces died Tuesday evening after being placed on life-support over the weekend.
Counselors will be on hand Wednesday at a Haverhill middle school to offer bereavement support for students dealing with the sudden death of an 11-year-old classmate, who passed away Tuesday evening. Haverhill Superintendent of Schools Margaret Marotta identified the girl as Precious Wallaces in a message to district families. “Sadness has once again gripped our school community,” Marotta said in a statement. “Precious Wallaces, a beautiful and well-loved girl that attended the Consentino School, passed away Tuesday evening after an accident over the weekend left her on life supports. Our condolences and thoughts go out to the family and friends of Precious.”Haverhill Mayor Jim Fiorentini echoed the condolences for the 11-year-old’s family “during this Christmas season.”
The city of Haverhill sends its condolences to the family of Precious Wallaces an 11 year old student at the Consentino School who tragically passed away today. Our thoughts are with the family during this Christmas season. Grief counselors will be at the school tomorrow.
— Jim Fiorentini (@jimfiorentini) December 19, 2018
The circumstances around Precious’s death remain under investigation, according to the Essex District Attorney’s office. Lawrence police and emergency personnel responded to a medical call at a Jackson Street apartment in the city around 3:29 a.m. on Saturday where the 11-year-old was visiting a family member. She was found unresponsive and initially transported to Lawrence General Hospital, then med-flighted to Tufts Medical Center where she was placed on life-support. She died there Tuesday evening.
“The District Attorney is responsible for investigating all sudden and unexpected deaths – whether foul play is suspected or not,” the DA’s office said in a statement. “Our involvement should not be construed that this is a criminal matter. At this point in time, all possible causes are being considered – including possible exposure to a toxic substance.”
Marotta urged families who knew Precious from the Cosentino and Tilton schools to talk about her death with their children.
“The passing of a friend is a difficult and challenging situation that can generate a high level of anxiety and distress in many students,” she wrote. “Children often have limited experience coping with a loss like this and may be confused as to how to handle grief. Hearing the news from a loved one, accompanied by reassuring words and the opportunity to voice fears and sadness, can provide great comfort to both children and adults when facing a loss.”
A GoFundMe page has been started to raise funds for the girl’s funeral. The page organizer, who identified herself as Precious’s aunt, said the 11-year-old “fought her battle until the end,” describing the girl as having “touched many people’s heart[s].”
“This tragedy happened so unexpectedly, who would of thought our Precious would leave us so soon,” Cathie Rivera wrote. “She was just starting to live life!!”
As of Wednesday morning, the page had raised more than $3,000.
