Stratton student dies at camp in Chile

By Published On: September 25th, 2012Comments Off on Stratton student dies at camp in Chile

The Stratton Mountain School community is reeling after a 16 year old student died in her sleep during a training camp in Chile.

Megan Virginia Ives of Farmington, Conn., and most recently Londonderry, Vt. died in her sleep of undetermined natural causes on Thursday (September 20, 2012) near Santiago, Chile while participating in an alpine skiing training camp. A student of the Farmington public school system through eighth grade, Meg attended Miss Porter’s School in Farmington, until transferring to Stratton Mountain School in Stratton, Vt. this fall.

A three season athlete at Miss Porter’s, Meg’s passion for athletics and arts led her to play field hockey, volleyball, skiing, shot put, golf and soccer. In addition to being a varsity skier at Miss Porter’s, Meg grew up racing for the Magic Mountain Race Team in Londonderry, Vt. Her love for the sport, the snow and the friends that grew from those experiences, were special to her and deeply treasured. Meg also loved creating stop motion video, photography, pottery and her newest adventure; batiking. She also treasured her faith as a Christian and lived not only to believe personally but also to demonstrate her faith through her actions. She loved giving of herself in humility, leading through example and loving unconditionally.

Meg’s life was so full of friends and shared love that it cannot be understated. She maintained connections with her fellow classmates from Farmington public schools, as well as all her friends from Miss Porter’s, whom she loved so dearly. In addition to the close friends she developed over the years skiing in Vermont and all the new friends she was just getting to know at Stratton Mountain School, Meg spent her summers in Leysin, Switzerland at Leysin American School, an international boarding school where she befriended countless people from around the globe. Meg’s circle of friends and loved ones literally stretched around the world and leaves a mark inversely proportional to her short life.

Megan leaves behind her two best friends and sisters, Keri and Katie; her parents, Tom and Mary; and sixteen aunts and uncles, twenty cousins and Rami Ackerman of Dallas, TX, who Meg, Katie and Keri grafted into their family as the brother they never had. She was predeceased by her grandparents, William and Doris Ives and Ed and Joan Knorring.

Her family will receive friends Saturday, September 29 from 3-6 p.m. at the Carmon Funeral Home&Family Center, 301 Country Club Rd., Avon. A memorial service will be held on Sunday, September 30 at 2 p.m. in the Valley Community Baptist Church, 590 West Avon Road, Avon, CT. A reception at the church will immediately follow.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to support the Nyumbani Village in Kenya where Meg longed to serve as her sister Keri had for the last two summers. They can be reached at Children of God Relief Fund, Inc., c/o Crowell & Moring, LLP, 1001 Pennsylvania Ave, N.W., Washington, DC 20004 or www.nyumbani.org. For online condolences and directions, please visit www.carmonfuneralhome.com.

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About the Author: Hank McKee

In memoriam: The veteran of the staff, McKee started with Ski Racing in 1980. Over the seasons, he covered virtually every aspect of the sport, from the pro tours to junior racing, freestyle and World Cup alpine competition. He wrote the first national stories for many U.S. team stars, and was still around to report on their retirements. “Longevity has its rewards,” he said, “but it’s a slow process.”