Families in the Hamilton School District community are grieving as details remain unclear on how a 5-year-old boy died after being struck by a school bus in the Silver Spring Intermediate School parking lot before the school day Thursday morning.
The bus was carrying students when the 4K student was struck in the parking lot around 8:30 a.m., according to a news release from the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department on Thursday. According to the department, the student arrived at the school to transfer to a shuttle bus bound for Willow Springs Learning Center.
The sheriff’s department confirmed to the Journal Sentinel on Friday that the student was a 5-year-old boy, but provided no additional information due to the ongoing investigation.
Kelly Katona, Zach Katona’s sister, identified the boy as Finn Edward Katona in a text message to a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter. Kelly Katona declined an interview on behalf of her parents, Zach and Ally.
In a letter to parents on Thursday, Hamilton School District superintendent Paul Mielke stated that the incident occurred before the start of the school day and that the district would not share any additional information out of respect for the family.
“We understand (this) tragedy is sure to raise many emotions, concerns and questions for our entire school community, especially our students,” Mielke wrote in her letter to parents.
Christ Our Savior became reunification space for families
Christ Our Savior Lutheran Church, located across the street from Silver Spring Intermediate School, became a reunification center for families and students following the incident, according to the church’s lead pastor, the Rev. Matthew Rose.
He stated that “a number of counselors” were present at the church, including Templeton Middle School school counselors and Waukesha County crisis counselors.
Rose stated that when he arrived at the church Thursday, he saw police officers and buses “all over the school.” He stated that he spoke with some parents who were in the parking lot, wondering what was going on.
“I did not know. Nobody knew. It was within 15 minutes of the incident,” Rose said.
Rose entered the church shortly before two busloads of students arrived. Rose estimated that each bus carried between 40 and 50 elementary school students, though he didn’t know the exact number. The students spent their day at church.
“We created a safe spot for them to be and figure out what was going on and take care of them,” Rose told me.
Rose stated that he did not learn the full details of what happened until the last child left the church around 2 p.m.
“I wanted to meet the kids where they were because they did not have all of the information. Not knowing the information was beneficial so that we could care for them properly,” he said.
Rose stated that the majority of the students were aware that something had occurred but were unsure of the specifics or the meaning of the event, as well as how to process what was going on.
“The questions of ‘do we get to go back to school today?’ an adult would try to answer,” Rose recapped. “We would discover a half-hour later that the answer was incorrect, so we tried to sit with the questions of ‘you don’t know, and we don’t know, so we’re going to be in this together.'” That was the space we aimed to provide.”
Rose reported that parents who came to pick up their children at the church expressed concern throughout the day. He stated that there was initial concern about a possible school shooting due to the large police presence at the school and the inability to determine what was going on.
Less than three weeks ago, a shooter opened fire at Madison’s private Christian school.
“The mood was not angry. It was not frustrated. “They all cared and wanted to see their children,” Rose explained.
Rose said Thursday’s accident “has been hitting the community hard,” and that the church had received “a number of phone calls and emails,” as well as people stopping by.
“That sense of pain is just very real in the community,” Rose told me.
Candlelight vigil planned for Friday night
The church, located at N59 W22476 Silver Spring Drive in Sussex, will hold a vigil tonight at 7 p.m. Rose organized the vigil alongside other faith leaders from the Cooperating Churches of Sussex, a multidenominational church collaboration.
“Our hope is that people will not feel isolated in the midst of this. For those of us who believe, we know that God is with us, and part of that is having the community around us, as we see God reflected in others,” Rose said. “So to be able to come together in a space where no one needs to feel alone in this moment so that we can acknowledge that this is broken and that this isn’t OK, but as a community, God walks with us, that we can walk together and that we can find that first step of what recovery for this community looks like.”
The candlelight vigil will feature Bible readings, prayers led by representatives from various churches, and prayers from the community. According to Rose, people will be able to write their prayers on cards, which will be read aloud.
Help from the community
Kelly Katona organized a meal train to help the family. However, a post on the Merton Schools PTO Facebook page on Friday requested monetary donations, stating that no meals were needed at this time.
By Friday evening, the website had raised more than $43,000, far exceeding its $5,000 goal.
Unity Lutheran Church’s Christ the King campus, 4600 Pilgrim Road, Brookfield, welcomes parents and children from 3 to 5 p.m. today.
Staff and childcare will be available, and there will be centers for coloring and making support banners, snuggling, or simply playing, as well as opportunities for parents and children to talk. The church will also provide juice and snacks, according to a Facebook post.
Sheriff’s department is investigating; few details have been released
The Wisconsin State Patrol and the city of Pewaukee Fire Department assisted the sheriff’s department at the scene Thursday morning, and the bus driver is “cooperating fully,” according to the sheriff’s department’s news release.
Dairyland-Hamilton Bus Co., which transports children in the district, did not respond to questions about the incident, but did send an email to the Journal Sentinel on Friday.
“Our heartfelt condolences to the student’s family, friends, and the Hamilton School community. “Dairyland-Hamilton is fully cooperating with local authorities as they investigate this tragic accident, and we are in constant communication with our District partners,” the statement said.
According to the company’s website, Dairyland-Hamilton drivers receive annual training that includes classroom and driving instruction.
“The Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Division of State Patrol conducts annual, spot check and presale inspections on school buses that operate in the state and maintains records of recent inspections,” according to a message sent by the agency.
“Additionally, DOT maintains a crash records database for the state of Wisconsin.” Information about Dairyland-Hamilton’s record was not immediately available.
Following the incident, parents from the school community expressed their condolences to the family of the deceased child on Facebook.
Others said the incident could have been avoided if the district and bus company had listened to parents’ concerns about the current busing system, which forces some students to transfer to a second bus.
A representative from the Hamilton School District did not return a reporter’s call or email about the bus transfer protocol.
Later Thursday, the atmosphere at Silver Spring Intermediate School was quiet. There were no memorials or crowds just before 6 p.m. The cars in the parking lot appeared to be parents picking up their children from after-school activities.
Silver Spring Intermediate is located near Hamilton High School and Templeton Middle School, as well as Willow Springs Learning Center, which is less than two miles away.
Hamilton School District serves most of north-central Waukesha County, including Butler, Lannon, Sussex, Lisbon, Menomonee Falls, and Pewaukee.
Willow Springs Learning Center; Woodside, Marcy, Maple Avenue, and Lannon elementary schools; Templeton Middle School; Silver Spring Intermediate School; and Hamilton High School are among its eight educational institutions.
