The school attended by a Waikoloa boy who drowned last Sunday is raising funds to try to help the family with funeral expenses.
The school attended by a Waikoloa boy who drowned last Sunday is raising funds to try to help the family with funeral expenses.
Students and teachers of Waikoloa Elementary and Middle School are hosting a bake sale fundraiser from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. today at the Waikoloa Village Market for Gwyneth “Jayson” Borromeo, 13, who drowned after leaping from a 15-foot cliff known as “Jump Rock” just south of Hapuna Beach.
Additionally, donations for the family are being taken at Hawaii First Federal Credit Union, at locations in Waimea and Hilo and also at a drop box in front of the Waikoloa Village Market. Envelopes with Borromeo’s last name written on it can be dropped into deposit boxes, or donations can be made with tellers.
Questions can be directed to the school’s social worker, Adrienne Gandolf, at 883-6805.
“As most of you know, we are dealing with a tragedy in our Waikoloa ohana,” reads a letter from the school to students and parents.
“Many parents have called, asking if there is anything they can do, either monetarily or by bringing meals,” the letter reads.
Borromeo was a Waikoloa eighth-grader, a boy whom Shaurell Tremaine, a member of the staff at the school, described as quiet and friendly.
“It’s been really hard, as far as us in the school office,” Tremaine said.
Borromeo apparently did not know how to swim when he made the plunge with two other boys his age, prompting a four-day search effort by the Hawaii County Fire Department, U.S. Coast Guard and private citizens.
Fire Department divers recovered his body from deep within a cavern system Wednesday. During a prayer service at the school attended by more than 200 people, Borromeo’s parents were informed the body was found.
Email Bret Yager at byager@westhawaiitoday.com.