Students and staff members at Manning Elementary School in Westmont have found a way to memorialize a little girl they said loved school and touched the lives of her teachers and classmates.

The school dedicated a park bench to Lindsey Ledwon, 5, a Manning student who died a year ago from brain cancer. The bench was dedicated April 22, the first anniversary of Lindsey’s death, during a ceremony at the school with the girl’s teacher, parents and classmates.

The bench will serve as an permanent memorial to Lindsey and will be part of the school’s outdoor butterfly garden, where all students and teachers will be able to sit and rest, said Principal Diana Molby.

“We wanted to find a way to remember Lindsey, and we are really happy to be doing this now, on the anniversary of the day she passed away,” Molby said. “As our children play on the playground, they can rest here, the same way Lindsey did on this playground.”

Teachers at the school described Lindsey as a bright, warm, caring child who loved school.
“She had such spunk and was always so happy to face each day,” said Doris Emslie, Lindsey’s teacher. “Even when she was sick, she never complained. Lindsey had more courage than I would have had in her situation.”

Lindsey’s mother, Stacey Ledwon, said the bench was the perfect way for the school to remember her daughter, and she was grateful to the school for it.

“One of Lindsey’s favorite things was school, and Mrs. Emslie,” Ledwon said. “So the idea that the school is remembering her in this way is very special.”

Brian Ledwon, Lindsey’s father, said the family lives nearby and will come by the school often to sit on the bench.

“It’s nice to know that people care,” he said.

Lindsay was diagnosed with brain cancer at the age of 2. She had been a student in Manning’s Early Childhood Education program for two years during her treatment. Stacey Ledwon said her daughter loved the school so much that she hated missing days when she was sick.

“She was so dedicated, she went to school on the Friday before she died,” Stacey Ledwon said.

Since Lindsay’s death, her older brother, Ben, a third-grader at Manning, has been active in raising money for cancer research. For two years, he has had his head shaved as part of the St. Baldrick’s Cancer Research Foundation, which raises money for pediatric cancer research.

Stacey Ledwon said her son raised close to $6,000 last year. This year, members of Ben’s family and friends are joining him and hope to raise close to $8,000, she said.

“The idea of the program is to shave your head to show solidarity for children who lose their hair while going through cancer treatments,” she said. “He has been very active in the program.”

Emslie said the school raised $1,300 that was donated to the family for the St. Baldrick’s fund.

“We are very proud of Ben for doing this and are thankful to the school for being so supportive in this process,” Brian Ledwon said.