The following article was posted on www.todaystmj4.com
District-Wide Mourning In Oconomowoc
OCONOMOWOC - Monday was a day filled with emotion at Oconomowoc High School as students returned to school with one less person to greet them.
The sign outside the school said it all: "Our thoughts and prayers are with the Bukosky and Bella families."
As another school week began Monday, the lesson at Oconomowoc High School was one that no one ever wants to learn.
"It's really tough just to deal with something like this because everybody's going to have to go through it at sometime or later," Deon Heubner said.
Unfortunately, Heubner and his classmates are learning about the heartache, this after their associate principal, Jennifer Bukosky died Friday in a car crash.
She wasn't alone.
She was seven months pregnant and her 10-year-old daughter died too.
"Everyone's bringing flowers and dropping them on the grand staircase to show our respects and that she'll be greatly missed," Heubner said.
And it showed as students dropped off flowers and notes outside of Bukosky's office window the tears were easy to come by, as they tried to make sense of it all.
"Trying to not think about it and trying to focus and stuff but it's still in your head and it's just hard," Nikki Williams said.
It's not just at the high school. Students continue to drop off flowers at the intersection where the accident occurred as well.
"In a strange way, this is part of education. This is part of all of our lives," Superintendent Pat Neudecker said.
Neudecker has put in place an unprecedented amount of support for the entire district, not just because Bukosky worked at the high school, but her daughter went to Summit Elementary School.
"We have classroom support, we have extra substitutes if teachers need a break, we have extra counselors on hand if kids just need some time out to talk to someone," Neudecker said.
The school district is setting up a special visitation Wednesday night, not just for the high school, but also Summit Elementary School.
Neudecker walked out the front doors of the high school late Sunday night. The Oconomowoc district's superintendent spent hours Saturday and Sunday with top advisors and leaders preparing for an unprecedented week of mourning.
There is an area set up outside the high school office windows that belonged to Jennifer Bukosky. The associate principal was killed after school Friday when an SUV slammed into the back of her car. Bukosky's 10-year-old daughter Courtney Bella died Saturday at Children's Hospital from injuries suffered in the crash.
The district developed a broad plan to support students at the high school where Bukosky worked and at Summit Elementary where Courtney was in the fourth grade.
"It's just sad to see a young girl not be able to live a full life," said Jenna Burnette, an Oconomowoc freshman who used to live down the street from Jennifer and her family.
Burnette went to the growing roadside memorial near the crash site on Highway 67 at Pabst Road this weekend. Hundreds of students brought flowers, crosses and tears to the intersection where the compassionate educator and her daughter lost their lives.
"It's just hard to realize that she's really gone," expressed Sammi Gaffney, a senior at the high school. "She's never going to be there again to see her smiling face in the hallway."
Counseling will be available for students at the high school Monday. Bukosky's family is also making arrangements for students to attend a special visitation Wednesday evening at Pagenkopf Funeral Home.
The school suggests that juniors and seniors attend during the first two hours, with freshmen and sophomores going after that.
"We understand how they feel because many of us feel the same way," said Joseph Moylan, Oconomowoc High School's principal. "There are going to be supports here for them."
Teachers will lead classroom discussions with older students at Summit Elementary. Those in 3rd through 6th grades will have an opportunity to talk about dealing with the loss of a classmate and friend.
"The teacher will help students have a better understanding of what happened," Neudecker told TODAY'S TMJ4 reporter Tom Murray.
The superintendent sent an email Sunday night with details about this week's plan. It was sent to about 3,000 families.
Funeral arrangements have been made for the Jennifer Bukosky and her unborn child. The first visitation will be Wednesday for student from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Pagenkopf Funeral Home, 1165 Summit Ave. in Oconomowoc.
On Thursday, a regular visitation for family and friends will be held from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.
A Mass of Christian burial for Bukosky and her unborn child will be held at 10 a.m. Friday at St. Jerome Catholic Church, 211 S. Main St., Oconomowoc.
