Dancers Pay Tribute to Deceased Student

Piru School’s 35th annual dance festival Friday opened with a tribute to Beatrice Meraz, 12, who died during a rehearsal for the event early this week.

Beatrice collapsed Monday afternoon while practicing a dance. She was rushed to Santa Paula Memorial Hospital, where she was pronounced dead of a pulmonary embolism at 3:44 p.m. An autopsy revealed that a blood clot from her leg had become lodged in her lung, Deputy Coroner Jim Wingate said.

Piru School Principal Jane Kampbell said the Fillmore Unified School District crisis team was on campus Tuesday to counsel Beatrice’s five siblings who attend the school and other students upset by the death. Teachers also took time from school work for students to discuss their feelings and ask questions.

Kampbell said students have coped well. “It’s been normal, but you can tell kids are thinking about it,” she said.

Although the staff considered canceling the dance festival, Kampbell said everyone agreed that it would be best for students to perform as planned.

The school’s 370 pupils went through their paces before a large crowd seated on the grassy playground. Western square and circle dances alternated with jump-rope routines and a version of La Bamba . The audience was invited to participate in the closing dance, La Raspa , before moving on to food and game booths and a book fair.

A tree dedicated to Beatrice will be planted when students and staff agree on a spot, Kampbell said.

Funeral services were held for Beatrice on Friday morning at San Salvador Catholic Church in Piru. Donations to defray funeral expenses may be made at Fillmore’s Bank of A. Levy.