PUTNAM VALLEY- Putnam Valley is a small, close-knit community, and the tragic deaths of two high school students last week have left the town devastated.

17-year-old Alina Toone and her 15-year-old brother, Jeremiah, perished when fire ravaged their family’s home in Cortlandt Manor on Wednesday morning. 

On Saturday Putnam Valley Superintendent of Schools Jeremy Luft admitted “since we first learned of the unimaginable loss, time feels frozen. We continue to struggle to understand what has happened to our school community.”

Luft expressed great pride of how the greater Putnam Valley community came together to support students, colleagues and families: “Watching our staff, especially our clinical and administrative colleagues, put aside their own personal grief to care for others has been truly inspiring. The outpouring of support from neighboring districts and communities has also been humbling. There was not a school within miles of Putnam Valley that did not offer to send clinical or administrative staff to help support our community,” he said.

When classes resume tomorrow, Dr. Luft  said staff will continue to stand ready to support students in every way possible: “ Counselors, clinicians, administrators, teachers, and support staff remain available to help students navigate the difficult emotions and challenges that accompany such a devastating loss,” he said.

The district’s leadership is also working with students to find what Luft described as “meaningful and appropriate ways to honor Alina and Jeremiah. As a public school district, there are limitations on what we can formally organize on campus; however, we are grateful for the support of our town officials, who have offered the use of the town park to support our students and community in any way possible.”

Luft also ordered flags across the Putnam Valley school campus to be flown at half-staff through June 6 in honor of the two teenagers.