Dying Man’s Kids Attend 1st Day of East Haven School - Together

EAST HAVEN, CT - It was a dying man’s wish to see his two children attend the same school together. On Monday Brian Savo got to see his wish fulfilled - as his two children went off to the first day of classes at East Haven Academy.

Savo, who has been heroically battling ALS for nearly a decade, sent his son to seventh grade at East Haven Academy and his daughter to fourth grade at the same school.

Savo was able to do so after the Board of Education earlier this summer voted to allow it.

The board's vote came after an earlier meeting at which the board did not take a vote to allow the kids to attend the same school together. Instead, they decided to have Brian Savo work on a policy that the board said needs to be in place, first, before it can be enacted. That policy was what allowed the board to move forward with the approval, Savo said.

The first time he spoke to the board about the issue, Savo said: "Since my daughter's 3 both of them have been going down to Washington, D.C. to fight for patient's rights and to fight for me. Well I'm here to fight for them. If any of you are parents, you'd be doing the same exact thing," Savo said while becoming emotionally distraught during the school board meeting."

At the meeting Savo pleaded with board members to do the right thing. Savo, 42, a life-long East Haven resident, said his wife was six months pregnant with their second-child when he was diagnosed with ALS.

He said his children wake up with him everyday and he asked school officials if they understood what it's like to not be able to get out of bed and have his two children, ages 11 and 9, and his wife get him out of bed, dress and feed him.

After the board originally denied Savo's request, Michelle A. DeLucia, chairperson of the board, issued a statement that in 2010, "the Board adopted a lottery system for admission to East Haven Academy. As adopted, the lottery system does not make provision for exceptions under any circumstances. Since that time, the Administration has faithfully implemented the lottery system for admission to East Haven Academy, and no exceptions have been granted."

"Speaking as an individual Board member, I believe that an exception in this case is warranted, but a decision must be made by the full Board. When the Board addresses Mr. Savo's request, I will be recommending that the Board establish a Committee to review the lottery policy at East Haven Academy and to recommend to the Board standards for making hardship exceptions to the policy in the future," DeLucia's statement concluded.

Savo said he realized the board was in a "difficult situation."

"But I also think that god forbid this happens to anyone else that we have layed some groundwork here to help the next family," Savo said.

Photo of the Savo children provided by Brian Savo.