Park Ridge 2nd-Grader Dies After Becoming Ill at Cheerleading Camp

Park Ridge, IL — A second-grade Park Ridge girl died Monday after becoming ill at a cheerleading camp, according to a release by Maine Township School District 207.

Katherine "Kate" Babich, a camper at Cheer Camp at Maine South High School, became sick Monday morning, and she was taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, the district said. She was pronounced dead later in the day, and an autopsy is scheduled Tuesday to determine the cause of death, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Kate attended Field School and had just completed first grade.

“All of us at District 64 are saddened by the loss of one of our students, and extend our deepest sympathies to her family,” Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 Superintendent Laurie Heinz said in a statement. "Kate is known as an inspired learner, a leader and a good friend to everyone in her class. I know her classmates and Field staff will miss her dearly.”

Crisis counselors will be made available to parents and students by both school districts, and District 64 has distributed resources to Field School families on age-appropriate ways to talk to kids about grief and loss.

The cheerleading camp, which was scheduled to run through Friday, has been canceled.

More via the Chicago Tribune

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