Middle school student from Milton dies in boating accident in Aruba

A teenage girl from Milton was killed in a boating accident while on vacation with her family in Aruba, officials at her school confirmed Friday. 

Cassidy Murray, a seventh-grader at Buckingham Browne & Nichols School in Cambridge, died Wednesday, according to a letter to the school community from Head of School Jennifer Price. 

“Our entire BB&N community is profoundly heartbroken as we grieve the loss of Cassidy. She joined our Middle School this fall and immediately created a unique mark on our campus,” reads Price’s statement. “Cassidy had a special gift for uniting classmates with her smile, laugh, and genuine kindness. People just gravitated to her, drawn by her great sense of fun and camaraderie.”

Price said Cassidy’s move to join BB&N was based on the recommendation of her brother who is in 10th grade. 

“She wasted no time creating her own unique mark on the MS campus,” Price wrote. “Her ever-present smile, infectious laugh, and upbeat personality knit together any group she was a part of.”

Cassidy was always up for a challenge, wrote Price, and approached them with a “sense of adventure and joy.” She played hockey for the first time this year, after many years of gymnastics, and was also proud of her Irish heritage, “which was displayed beautifully with a claddagh-ring mug and celtic-cross plate that she made in ceramics class.”

In a statement, Cassidy’s family thanked everyone for their love and support, and asked for time and space to grieve privately.

“Cassidy’s beautiful spirit, genuinely kind heart, bright mind, and joyful zest for life will be profoundly missed by all who knew and loved her,” the statement read.

Cassidy transferred from Pierce Middle School in the Milton school district. Milton Superintendent James Jette called her an “outstanding and joyful” student. 

“Cassidy left an indelible impression on her peers and the faculty and staff at both the Glover Elementary School which she attended prior to Pierce Middle School,” wrote Jette in an email to Boston.com. “There are no words to describe the tragic loss of this vibrant young girl who had so much to offer and her whole life ahead of her. My thoughts and prayers go out to the family, friends, and all those who are deeply affected by Cassidy’s death.”

Price said BB&N middle school will be open Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon for students and parents to drop by and “be in community with each other,” along with some counselors, teachers, and advisers. School on Monday will start with class meetings. 

“With senseless tragedies such as this, the truth is that there is no universally ‘right’ way to cope with the situation. Each of us, adults and children, who are affected by this acutely sad news will need to grieve and process in our own unique way,” read Price’s email. “What I do know about the BB&N community is this: We will all be there in our own way to lend a hand or an ear to anyone who is struggling, to lean on each other, and to keep the Murray family in our hearts, thoughts, and prayers in these days and weeks ahead.”