Tragic News and Condolences
June 17, 2020
Dear Weston Community,
It is with deepest grief that I share with you that Weston’s Director of Health Services and Field School Nurse, Laurie Melchionda, was tragically shot and killed outside her Braintree home this morning. We are reeling from this shocking and devastating news. Please join me in extending our heartfelt sympathies to Laurie’s family.
With over thirty years of experience in nursing, Laurie was hired as Director of Health Services for the Weston Public Schools in 2018. In her two years at Weston, she made a tremendous impact in supporting the health and well-being of all of our students, working closely with her nursing staff, educators, families, service providers, and town leaders. Most recently, Laurie was the primary liaison between the schools and the Weston Board of Health throughout the COVID-19 crisis and was instrumental in guiding and supporting the school and the town. We are suffering a tremendous loss. Laurie brought professionalism, expertise, warmth, and caring to our school community every day. We will be spending many difficult moments grieving her loss.
In order to support our community during this difficult time, we are arranging to have counselors available during the upcoming days to assist students and staff with the range of emotions that accompany such a tragic loss. We know that experiencing, witnessing, or even hearing of a traumatic incident such as this may affect a child or adult in a variety of ways; thus, we are working to develop a support system within our district’s COVID-19 guidelines that Laurie created. We will provide additional details tomorrow when the plan is in place.
Below are links to help families and educators support our children.
Helping Students Cope with Tragic Loss
Addressing Grief: Tips for Teachers and Administrators
Sincerely,
Dr. Midge Connolly
Superintendent
