Small Minnesota school mourns 3 current and former students in a matter of days
Three current and former Dawson-Boyd students have died in a matter of days, leaving a small school community in far western Minnesota grieving a football player who died in a crash and a graduate who was a South Dakota deputy shot and killed in the line of duty.
Senior Carter Monaghan was the football player. Katherine Frank, a 2018 Dawson-Boyd graduate, was a Minnehaha County deputy. The third was Aaron Gebur, a graduate whose mother previously served students at the school as a paraprofessional. The school's message did not say how Gebur died or detail the circumstances of any of the deaths.
"Three lives. Three families. Countless connections throughout our community," the school said in a message to its community.
The losses weigh heavily in a small school, the message said. "Our students become our graduates, our graduates become our neighbors."
Frank was shot Friday and died Monday, surrounded by family and loved ones, according to a GoFundMe page organized by the Minnehaha County Deputies Association.
"Katherine was more than her badge," the page said, adding she was a sister, daughter, granddaughter, girlfriend and friend.
Her family describes her as incredibly funny and someone who gets along with just about everybody. Outside of work, she enjoyed spending time with her two dogs, Ares and Aspen, reading, cooking and playing video games. She leaves behind five siblings, ages 15 to 28, her grandparents and her boyfriend.
The association is raising money for funeral costs and the family's financial stability. As of Wednesday, the fundraiser had collected more than $80,000 in 811 donations, above its $60,000 goal.
"There are no words that can take away the pain," the school said, offering "compassion, our presence, and our care for one another." It urged people to remember that grief looks different for everyone, to extend grace and to check on one another.
The school said each of the three will remain part of its "Blackjack family."
