Rundlett Community Mourning the Loss of Sixth-Grader

CONCORD, NH - A local sixth-grader has passed away after a long illness, according to the principal of Rundlett Middle School.

Carrigan Johnson, a sixth-grader at the school, passed away this weekend, according to an email from Tom Sica sent to parents and the school community.

“This is a very sad time for all of us at Rundlett Middle School,” Sica noted. “Our hearts ache for the profound loss that each family has suffered.”

In 2014, friends of Johnson’s family set up a YouCaring.com account to raise $10,000 online for medical expenses, after Carrigan was diagnosed with a brain tumor, and raised nearly $7,000 in donations to pay for travel to Lebanon and surgeries. Carrigan also attended Broken Ground Elementary School.

Sica also noted that two parents with children at RMS – Jen Norton and Don Crandlemire – also passed away this weekend, and added that as students prepare to return to school, guidance counselors would be available to any student that would like to share their sadness or just talk about these events.

“We need to remember that any stunning loss can trigger a host of emotional reactions in all of us and that there is no right or wrong way to express grief,” he said. “Please be assured that all of our teachers and support staff will be ready to tend to the emotional needs of our students, and will also provide the familiar routines of the school day which reassure and sustain in difficult days. We will need to support each other and remain a strong community during this sorrowful time.”