Greenon schools offers counseling in wake of student deaths

Greenon local school leaders want students to have the time and resources to grieve after a student was killed in a car crash Sunday, the third student to die in a crash since the start of the school year.

Kenny DePhillip, 16, was the passenger in a car that left Fowler Road in Enon and hit a utility pole. He was pronounced dead at the scene. In August, two athletes, David Waag and Connor Williams, were killed in a crash.

“Right now we’re just concerned with our students and their healing,” Greenon Superintendent Brad Silvus said.

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DePhillip was on the swim team and a member of the band.

“He’s … a very well liked young man and knew a ton of kids,” Silvus said.

A visitation was held at Greenon High School on Thursday evening. The district will close schools Friday so that teachers and students can attend DePhillip’s funeral.

“We just feel like it’s the right thing to do to let everyone have that opportunity,” Silvus said.

Counselors at the schools are available to talk to students, he said.

“We’re going to get through all of this together,” he said.

The school also wants to give students time to grieve for their friends.

“If they need some time then we give them that time,” he said. “Whether it’s to sit with a counselor and talk or whether it’s to sit quietly.”

READ MORE: Greenon boys killed in crash remembered as compassionate, committed

That time is important for teens, according to Jordan Allison, a psychologist with Springfield Regional Medical Group.

“The reality is we don’t just move on from these types of losses in our life,” Allison said. “But what we do, though, is find a way to move forward while carrying with us part of that grief.”

Teenagers often want to turn inward when faced with a death, he said, but that can be harmful. Teens thrive in social situations, he said.

“They struggle sometimes with how to ask for help,” he said. “With how to open up and how to come to their parents with the challenges they’re facing.”

Parents should encourage their children to talk about how they’re feeling when they’re ready, he said.

“We give them space to get back into their normal routine,” he said, “but also space to retreat and reflect when they need that as well.”

A funeral for DePhillip will be held at 11 a.m. Friday at Enon United Methodist Church. A tribute for DePhillip will be held at Greenon’s last home football game, Oct. 27.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation. Driver inattention, lack of familiarity with the road and speed are all being considered as causes, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

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