Community gathers to mourn CCHS seniors with school set to resume

Acton students return to class today as the community continues to grieve the loss of three teenagers who died after a crash on a Florida highway during spring vacation. 

Many embracing and holding hands, hundreds gathered at Acton-Carlisle High School on Sunday night to honor the memory of CCHS seniors Jimmy McIntosh, Maisey O’Donnell, and Hannah Wasserman. 

And as schools reopen, administrators say they have widespread support resources in place for students and staff.

“This unimaginable news has profoundly affected our school community, and our thoughts are with the families, friends, and loved ones of those we lost,” high school co-principals Katie Stahl and Brian Miller said in a Sunday email to families. 

“Together, we will navigate this difficult time, uplift one another, and honor the memories of the students we have lost.” 

McIntosh and Wasserman lost their lives after their SUV collided with a tractor-trailer near Inlet Beach in the Florida panhandle. O’Donnell died a short time later. A fourth student is recovering from her serious injuries. 

The April 21 accident remains under investigation. 

Sunday gathering

News of the Florida calamity prompted an outpouring of sorrow in Acton and Carlisle. School officials have offered the aid of grief counselors and other support. Faith communities also welcomed people seeking solace.

The entrance to the CCHS campus blossomed with fresh bouquets on Sunday evening, a temporary shrine built bloom by bloom by those who came to Memorial Field to remember three lives cut short.  

The townwide remembrance was to begin with comments from schools Superintendent Laurie Hunter, a moment of silence, words from principals Stahl and Miller, and messages from the McIntosh, O’Donnell, and Wasserman families. 

Attendees were also to hear the late seniors’ favorite songs, along with a live musical performance by CCHS musicians and non-denominational remarks from Rabbi Darby Leigh Kerem Shalom in Acton and Rev. Joel Schofield of Carlisle Congregational Church. 

[Editor’s note: School officials asked the media to refrain from entering the CCHS campus for the purpose of covering Sunday’s event. The Acton Bridge honored this request.]

Schofield shared his prepared remarks with The Bridge after the event concluded. The former 10-year CCHS staff member said he was shocked by the tragedy. 

“In moments like this, it’s okay to weep,” he told attendees, according to his remarks. “You should weep. And you shouldn’t remain isolated as you deal with the emotions and grief you’re feeling.” Schofield urged people to check in on friends, too: “You are not alone as you weep,” he said. 

Amid references to his Christian faith, Schofield acknowledged difficult questions for which he had no answers, but told listeners that “the fact that you’re here tonight is a sign you’re doing the right thing: you’re leaning into community.”

Separately, Leigh recalled his remarks in an interview with The Bridge. While his comments weren’t fully scripted, he said he shared his own message of solidarity. 

The rabbi said he prayed “for peace in the hearts” of people mourning the recent loss. He prayed for strength as the community navigates the unknown. And he prayed for everyone in attendance to be kind to each other and themselves. 

Leigh said he “doesn’t pretend that faith is the only way to get through this moment.” But he said it is a resource for people in need. 

When they don’t know where to turn, he said, faith traditions might help people “find the wisdom and the meaning, the strength and the courage to keep putting one foot in front of the other.”

The Bridge asked for copies of the remarks given by Hunter, Stahl, and Miller. In response to a separate email, school spokesperson Tom Lucey said that in summary, the administrators spoke “from their hearts regarding community and staying together during this most difficult time to remind the community that they don’t have to grieve alone.”

He said Hunter, Stahl, and Miller spoke “to honor Hannah, Maisey, and Jimmy not just with sorrow, but with love — for them, for their families, and for each other.”

Monday plans

Ahead of the return to school, principals shared updates for students and families in a flurry of weekend emails to the community. 

Stahl and Miller said CCHS would start Monday with an announcement acknowledging the loss and a moment of silence. Otherwise, the day was to follow a normal bell schedule. 

The high school plans on having extra counselors and mental health professionals available this week to help students and staff. The co-principals said CCHS will have therapy dogs on campus “for those who find comfort in their presence.”

Like CCHS, principal Justin Cameron said the Ellen Garrison Building at Acton Middle School would follow a normal Monday schedule. The school was not going to read any statement about the tragedy to students over the public address system.

Cameron wrote that school leaders were “reconvening the CMS Crisis Management Team to support any students and staff members most directly impacted.” He said counselors would be on hand Monday, alongside additional personnel “trained to assist faculty and staff members.” 

He said parents should let staff know about students “we should stay especially close to” in the wake of the tragedy.

At the elementary level, school administrators said they would not be “initiating conversations about the tragedy with students. But if children ask questions, staff will be “prepared to respond with care in developmentally appropriate ways.”

Grief counselors will be available to elementary school students.

Principal Matt Lucey, in an email sent to families, said Wasserman’s loss hits Willard Elementary School especially hard because Wasserman was an alumna and her mother  a member of the staff. 

‘Stability and support’

Stahl and Miller said “maintaining a familiar structure can provide stability and support.” This support, the principals said, is “especially important” after last week’s tragedy. 

Many town and school events will go on as planned, with a few exceptions, such as the postponement of a pickleball tournament meant to benefit a sports team and of several socials sponsored by the CCHS Parents Association. 

Concord250 organizers, just days removed from April 19 celebrations, said they would pause making updates on additional semiquincentennial events. 

“This simply isn’t the time,” they said in a social media post. 

The Concord250 team said it would instead share information about vigils, memorials, and other community gatherings. “Acton has faced difficult chapters throughout its long history, but what has always defined us is how we show up for another when it matters most,” the organizers said. 

The desire to remember and honor the three students reached beyond the bounds of Acton and Carlisle.

Lincoln-Sudbury High School soccer and basketball coach Nadia Sussman was among those who sent sympathies and urged community members to share a graphic showing solidarity between the sports rivals. 

“A devastating loss such as this has a profound and far reaching effect within a local community,” she said in an Instagram post. 

Christine M. Quirk contributed reporting.