Fatalities Remind Teens They’Re Not Invincible

Post Falls High School has lost two students this year. Many students still are trying to cope with the tragedies.

Yvonne Gilmore, a junior, died in a car accident, while Carissa Benway fell victim to foul play.

The day after Gilmore’s death, rumors swept through the halls. During first period Principal John Billetz made a school-wide address asking for a moment of silence. After that, the halls were ghostly quiet during class, and subdued during the passing periods. Although not everyone knew Gilmore, her death was unexpected, and the mortality of seemingly invincible teenagers came into clear focus.

Chris Olson, a counselor at the high school, said it wasn’t just Gilmore’s friends who were affected. “There were a lot of kids affected by her death,” she said. She, too, spoke of teenage mortality.

A crisis room was set up in a spare classroom, headed by one of two rotating school district teams. Each team has a captain. In this case it was Dave Sattherwaite, a counselor at the new Mullan Trail Elementary. The team includes primarily counselors and high school personnel.

Gilmore was a junior who was involved in Girl Scouts and the Post Falls Fire Department’s Junior Ranger program.

“She was nice and funny,” said Cassiopeia Kemp, a senior and friend of Gilmore. “Everyone was shocked, and it kind of made everyone think that teenagers aren’t as invincible as they think they are.”

Kemp said that Gilmore was going to throw a party for her sister Yvette’s birthday, which is coming up soon. Now, said Kemp, Yvette has lost interest in her birthday, saying she would rather have her sister back than have a party.

Kemp said that she thought Gilmore’s death brought people together, opening up lines of communication that otherwise would never have been opened.

Another friend of Gilmore’s said she thought the response to Gilmore’s death was sadly lacking in compassion. “They were joking around in my classes. They didn’t take it seriously. It was totally inappropriate.”

Carissa Benway, an incoming freshman, was not as well-known as Gilmore.

Jack Kemp said he was familiar with Benway, but didn’t know her well enough to grieve. But he did say there was an outpouring of expression for Benway. “A whole lot of people wrote messages on their lockers. It brought a down-setting of mind. They were sad.”

Both Kemps and Olson say that Benway’s death was terribly shocking because she was murdered.

Post Falls High School recently had a blood drive sponsored by Key Club, which was held in memory of Gilmore and Benway.