A primary school in Helmshore has paid tribute to a former pupil, who died in January from an allergic reaction.
On Friday (February 9), children at St Veronica’s RC Primary School wore colourful clothes, in memory of Órla who “always wore bright clothes”.
The school also fundraised for Anaphylaxis UK and educated children about the dangers of anaphylaxia, which is a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction that can develop rapidly.
The school raised £300 for the charity, thanks to donations from the community, parents and children.
Julie Cawtherley, assistant head teacher, said staff members are “still in shock” after hearing the news of Órla's death.
She said: “As a school community we are still in shock, some of us attended Órla's funeral and paid our respects to the family.
“We want to do all we can to support the Baxendale family.”
Julie said Órla was a pleasure to teach when she attended the school.
She said: “There are a few teachers still working here that remember Órla, myself included.
“She was a quiet girl when she was here, she was a pleasure to teach and extremely well behaved.
“She was always smiling and helping others. We knew about her talent for dancing and we often watched her share her talents in our school assemblies and school productions.
“Órla is very fondly remembered and we are all saddened by the sudden death of a beautiful girl.
“She was a role model to other pupils and we were excited to hear of her worldwide adventures dancing her way around the world. Her mum often attends our school assemblies and I regularly catch up with Angela and listen to the exciting news about all of her children.
“I could tell how proud she was of all of her children, as are we.”
Órla, who moved from East Lancashire to New York to pursue her dream career, died after eating cookies in America.
The former Westholme School pupil ate the product manufactured by Cookies United, an American baking company, and sold by Stew Leonard’s, a supermarket chain in America.
She was preparing for an Alice in Wonderland performance in New Milford, Connecticut.
The batch of Vanilla Florentine Cookies has since been recalled.
An investigation is now ongoing to determine who is responsible for the fatal error.
Symptoms of anaphylaxis
Anaphylaxis is a life-threatening allergic reaction that happens very quickly. It can be caused by food, medicine or insect stings. Call 999 if you think you or someone else is having an anaphylactic reaction.
According to the NHS, symptoms include:
- swelling of your throat and tongue
- difficulty breathing or breathing very fast
- difficulty swallowing, tightness in your throat or a hoarse voice
- wheezing, coughing or noisy breathing
- feeling tired or confused
- feeling faint, dizzy or fainting
- skin that feels cold to the touch
- blue, grey or pale skin, lips or tongue – if you have brown or black skin, this may be easier to see on the palms of your hands or soles of your feet
You may also have a rash that's swollen, raised or itchy.
Orla’s family is encouraging people to make a donation to Allergy UK (www.allergyuk.org) or Anaphylaxis UK.
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