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News
Community mourns student's death : News : Oswego Ledger-Sentinel : Hometown Newspaper for Oswego and Montgomery, IllinoisCommunity mourns student's death
| Counselors available for students, staff in all Oswego district schools
| by John Etheredge
| 4/19/2012
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Oswego School District teachers, counselors and nurses have been on alert to assist district students and staff members who may be suffering emotionally due to the sudden death of a Thompson Junior High School sixth grader last week.
Eric Lederman, age 12, died Thursday evening at Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge.
Lederman was a member of the Oswego Baseball and Softball Association's (OBSA) 12U-Orange travel team. He was struck by a baseball while on the sidelines during a game at Atten Park in Wheaton last Wednesday (April 11) evening.
Lederman was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove for treatment, but was later transferred to Lutheran General Hospital.
The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office determined Saturday that Lederman died of a cerebral hemorrhage due to blunt trauma to the head.
Funeral services for Lederman will be held today, Thursday, beginning at 11 a.m. at Dieterle Memorial Home, 1120 South Broadway Avenue (Ill. Route 25) in Montgomery. Interment will be private. (A complete obituary is in Countywide, section two.)
In a statement issued by the school district and the OBSA, Lederman was described as a student "who had great character and a wonderful sense of humor."
The statement reads, "As a member of the wrestling team he was always willing to help out: in practice, at meets, or in the hallways. His caring attitude towards his peers, quick wit and dedication to teamwork are things that will be remembered about him at Thompson Junior High."
"He was an inspiration to his teammates, coaches, and baseball family," said his baseball coach, Brian Zacker. He played in-house baseball for two years followed by OBSA travel baseball for three years wearing No. 2 with his primary positions being catcher, third base, and centerfield.
"He played with an infectious smile and played the game with tremendous passion and heart," Zacker continued. "His trademark move was to clap his batting gloves together continuously when he got on base to distract the pitcher. We could always hear when he was on base. He was also the comedian of the team. Whether we lost 2-1 or 20-1, he would always say something in our postgame huddle that would make us laugh. He brought a tremendous amount of joy, passion, and love to his team, coaches, and baseball family and we will never forget him. He may have been No. 2 in the field, but he will always be No. 1 in our hearts."
Kristine Liptrot, director of communication for the school district, said Monday it may be especially difficult for junior high school-age students to cope in the wake of the tragedy.
"Junior high students are kind of in that delicate area where they may not have faced a death in the family or otherwise before," she said, adding, "As a result, they may require a certain level of assistance that may not be needed in someone of an older age."
Liptrot said some students may also be reluctant to discuss their feelings.
"They may think they don't need to talk to someone and they tend to internalize their feelings," she said. "So the nurses (at school) will see more stomach aches and things like that. We're all on alert, but we also need the parents to help us out. They should give us a call so we can help their children."
Liptrot added, "The parents know their children best if they are having difficulty. Whether they want to talk about it a lot or don't want to talk about it at all, it's important to keep the lines of communication open."
Liptrot said Lederman's death has touched all of the district's schools.
Referring to Lederman, she said, "He was involved in a number of activities, one of which was wrestling and though his baseball team was not directly affiliated with the (school) district, it has members from each of our junior high schools."
She noted that as a sixth grader Lederman had recently completed his elementary school career and he has an older sibling who attends Oswego High School.
In addition, Liptrot said Lederman's mother works at Thompson Junior High School for the district's food service vendor.
"So it's affected our entire district. It's not one of those situations where it is isolated to one grieving school which is why we have made the (counseling) services available to anyone who needs it for as long as it is needed," she said.
The OBSA and the Oswego Youth Tackle Football League have set up a memorial fund for Lederman. Monetary donations can be made to the fund at Allied First Bank, 3201 Orchard Road, Oswego, Illinois 60543. Phone 630-383-0161 for additional information.
Anastasia Roytburg, of Premier Design Jewelry, and Sharon Stanton will host a benefit jewelry presentation in Stanton's home at 293 Prairieview Drive in Oswego next Tuesday, April 24 starting at 7 p.m. (Roytburg and Stanton both have sons that play on the OBSA's Bronco team.)
Roytburg said profits from the event will be donated to the Lederman family. Additionally, she said a percentage of the profits from any additional jewelry presentations that result from Tuesday's fund-raiser will also be donated to the Lederman family.
For additional information about Tuesday's event contract Stanton at 630-636-9751.
Liptrot noted that several district schools are also doing fund-raising projects in Lederman's memory.
"As young as the children are, they also want to do something, to take some sort of action and that gives them a sense of having some control," she said. "We want to make sure we give them that ability to be able to reflect on what happened and they can feel that they are doing something in their own way to make it feel better."
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