VA girl dies of COVID days after being ill after ‘teacher escorts her for sick children’

A 10-year-old Virginia girl has died of COVID-19 and her family are demanding answers after learning she has been assigned as a “class nurse,” escorting sick children to the nurses office.

Teresa Sperry died just five days after she began to experience symptoms of COVID along with a headache.

Her family did not learn that she had tested positive for the coronavirus until two days after her death.

Nicole and Jeff Sperry, Teresa’s parents, say they followed all safety measures to protect their daughter, but later learned that her teacher gave her “classwork” of walking with sick children. to get to the nurse’s office.

Nicole Sperry made the accusation in a Facebook post.

‘[Teresa] would have continued to be here if people had stopped sending their sick children to school, ”Nicole said. “Her teacher at Hillpoint gave her the job of nurse.” She had to accompany all the sick students in her class to the nurses’ office.

“It was his class job,” said Jeff Sperry.

“And she said if the kids were sick and had to go home, she had to go get their satchel and bring it back,” Nicole added.

Both parents were vaccinated against COVID, but Jeff Sperry suffered from a breakthrough infection after his daughter’s death.

Authorities at the Suffolk Public Schools, home of Teresa’s Hillpoint School, are investigating the charge.

A spokesperson for the school district said if what the Sperry family is alleging is true, it would be a violation of school policy.

The school has a rule in place that only adults can accompany children with symptoms of COVID-19 to the nurses office, Ward added.

“The protocol at Hillpoint Elementary School is for the teacher or any adult to contact the main office with a ‘C’ code. When this happens, one of the administrators or the school nurse will come to the classroom to pick up the student, ”Ward told the Virginian Pilot. “We are still investigating to make sure this process has been faithfully followed.”

The couple first made an explosive statement on Facebook, where Nicole Sperry wrote that Teresa “would have continued to be here if people had stopped sending their sick children to school.” Her teacher at Hillpoint gave her the job of “nurse”. She had to accompany all the sick students in her class to the nurses’ office.

The school district, headed by the superintendent, Dr. John B. Gordon III, sent a letter to parents regarding Sperry’s death, but never mentioned Teresa’s name.

Nicole responded again via a Facebook post.

“I am her mother and this sad apology of a letter should not have been disclosed without at least one phone call from her,” she wrote. ‘I won’t hide anymore. My beautiful daughter was taken from me because people are too selfish to care about what might happen to others.

“This horrible one-letter apology is not acceptable,” Sperry added. “Do you want to know what you can do to honor my lovely daughter?” Wear a fucking mask! To get vaccinated! Social distance! Most importantly, stop complaining and keep your sick kids at home. Because in the end, you will still be able to kiss your own.

Jeff Sperry told CNN his daughter “was happy, she was healthy and strong, and it took her less than five days.”

Teresa was one of two children reported by the Virginia Health Department to have died from COVID-19 last week.