Pierce Middle School Remembers Emily Ayre

As students and staff returned to on Wednesday, there was one face missing from the tight-knit school community, guidance counselor Emily Ayre.

Ayre passed away unexpectedly on , nearly two years to the day after she interviewed at Pierce Middle School.

“When we interviewed her, she was by far the unanimous candidate,” recalled Pierce Principal James Jette.

Ayre acclimated immediately to her position as the sixth grade guidance counselor her first year. Last year, per the guidance department rotation, she moved with those students to seventh grade and was preparing to begin the 2011-2012 school year with those same students in eighth grade.

Jette described the Woodbury Connecticut native as a vibrant, energetic, professional, self-motivated team player who had an unbelievable impact on the Pierce.

Fellow guidance counselor Lisa Veldran echoed the principal’s thoughts, calling her colleague spectacular, incredibly compassionate, creative and gifted with a great sense of humor.

During the school year, Ayre dedicated herself to her students, meeting one-on-one, in lunch groups and after school. She also had breakfast with students daily at 7 a.m., a full 40 minutes before staff was expected to arrive at the school.

“She went above and beyond her job description,” said Jette.

Jette explained that Ayre knew all her students and worked with everyone, not just those who excelled or struggled.

“She knew all their names,” said Veldran. “She knew all their stories.”

Last year, Ayre created a mentoring program where she brought seventh grade students to to work with third graders.

She also supervised the Pierce Middle School Peer Mediation Program, where she chose and trained peer mediators to resolve conflicts between classmates.

Ayre was instrumental; along with the other Pierce guidance counselors, in bringing a cyber-bullying program to the school last spring.

When Veldran saw Ayre in June she was very excited about a recently completed anti-bullying curriculum.

Through the individual attention and programs, Ayre created a bond with her students.

“She was really able to connect with all kinds of kids,” said Veldran.

Following Ayre’s death, the Milton Public Schools immediately went to work helping the entire community deal with the loss.

Grief specialist Maria Trozzi, M.Ed., met with staff members who were available after the news broke. She also held a program for parents on speaking to children about the tragedy. The parent program was attended by between 75 and 80 people, estimated Jette, who said the outreach from parents went far beyond the attendees.

“I know from the phone calls to the emails that Emily’s impact was far-reaching,” said Jette.

Before the first day of school, Jette said the Pierce faculty and staff planned to address the loss with students on Wednesday, holding 27 seconds of silence – one for each year of Ayre’s life—and offering support to those in need.

Jette said the message to his staff and students is that it’s OK to be sad and grieve. It is also important for both groups to share what they need in this time of grief.

The school will honor Ayre’s memory further, Jette said, but those plans were on hold until everyone returned from summer break.

Donations in honor of Emily Ayre may be made to Camp Woodstock, 42 Camp Road, Woodstock Valley, CT 06282.