BuffyMars
05-01-2007, 02:57 PM
Pregnant Anna teacher hit, killed by dump truck
McKinney: Friends recall woman devoted to starting new family
08:04 AM CDT on Tuesday, May 1, 2007
By TIARA M. ELLIS / The Dallas Morning News
tellis@dallasnews.com
McKINNEY – Alex and LeAnn Selkirk were just starting out. They had been married less than 10 months and were expecting their first child.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/img/05-07/0501selkirk.jpg
Now Mr. Selkirk is unexpectedly alone.
His wife and their unborn child died Monday morning when a dump truck fell over on her Infiniti sport-utility vehicle. Mrs. Selkirk was about four months pregnant.
LeAnn Selkirk "Alex is in disbelief," Craig Lemmon, Mr. Selkirk's business partner and friend, said Monday afternoon as he stood outside the couple's McKinney home. "He's wondering how did this happen."
Mrs. Selkirk, a 26-year-old kindergarten teacher in the Anna school district, left the house Monday morning for work, where she was to take her students on a daylong field trip to the Fort Worth Zoo.
She didn't get far. McKinney police said that about 7:10 a.m., she was driving south on Custer Road near Virginia Parkway when the dump truck hit her.
The truck driver, Alberto Espinosa, 28, of Plano was not injured in the crash, which remains under investigation, said McKinney police Capt. Randy Roland.
Someone from the school called Mr. Selkirk to ask whether his wife was ill because she had not arrived by 8 a.m.
"He was rather distraught and didn't know where she was, but had two choices: Call the police or drive her route to work," Mr. Lemmon said. "So he drove. He went to the scene and obviously recognized that it was his wife."
Ecstatic about baby
Friends and co-workers described the Selkirks' marriage as a good one, with each serving as a balance to the other. They were excited by the news of the baby, said Tamatha Parker, a friend of Mrs. Selkirk and an Anna Middle School teacher's aide.
"She e-mailed me a picture of the sonogram," Mrs. Parker said. "We were all talking about how we couldn't wait for that baby. Now she's not here. It's so sad."
Mrs. Selkirk's MySpace Web page is filled with photographs of her and her husband kissing, hugging and holding hands. It also includes a countdown until the birth of "Baby Selkirk," putting her at 16 weeks and six days pregnant with 171 days to go Monday.
In a fill-in-the-blank answer to the question "Who I'd like to meet," it says, "This little thing I got growing in my belly!"
Another entry reads: "We just bought our first house this summer and we love spending time at home. We just found out that we are pregnant and are so excited. Lately all we have had is baby on the brain. Our lives are getting ready to change forever!"
Shielding students
Mrs. Selkirk had been a kindergarten teacher in the Anna Independent School District for nearly three years and taught in the dual-language program.
News of her death spread quickly in Anna schools Monday. But school officials made a decision not to tell the kindergartners.
"Because of the age of the students, we're talking 5- and 6-year-olds, we feel it's better to send a note home with the students to let their parents talk to them about it first," Anna school Superintendent Joe Wardell said.
The kindergarten teachers and Dr. Wardell decided to let the students go to Fort Worth for their field trip as planned.
Counselors were at school Monday for the teachers and are to return today for students.
Bryant Elementary School and Central Campus principal Pete Slaughter said Mrs. Selkirk was one of those teachers who balanced being friendly to students with her role as a disciplinarian.
"She'd be silly with them, but she'd teach them. She had high expectations, but she could be fun," Mr. Slaughter said.
Wild about teaching
Last year Mrs. Selkirk set up her classroom with a jungle theme, with a paper tree on the wall along with zebra and leopard prints. Kids' work was framed in jungle patterns, and stuffed animals were all over the place.
Her family knew how important her students were to her, Mrs. Parker said. Every Christmas and birthday, they gave her supplies and learning tools for her classroom because they knew that's what she really wanted, she said.
Mrs. Parker's son, Jonah, was in Mrs. Selkirk's class last year.
"I told him: 'LeAnn is in heaven. She will never hurt again and her baby's with her. They'll never have to be separated. I know it's hard because we can't see her,' " Mrs. Parker said.
"And he said, 'That's what's going to be hard for me, not being able to see her and hug her.' "
McKinney: Friends recall woman devoted to starting new family
08:04 AM CDT on Tuesday, May 1, 2007
By TIARA M. ELLIS / The Dallas Morning News
tellis@dallasnews.com
McKINNEY – Alex and LeAnn Selkirk were just starting out. They had been married less than 10 months and were expecting their first child.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/img/05-07/0501selkirk.jpg
Now Mr. Selkirk is unexpectedly alone.
His wife and their unborn child died Monday morning when a dump truck fell over on her Infiniti sport-utility vehicle. Mrs. Selkirk was about four months pregnant.
LeAnn Selkirk "Alex is in disbelief," Craig Lemmon, Mr. Selkirk's business partner and friend, said Monday afternoon as he stood outside the couple's McKinney home. "He's wondering how did this happen."
Mrs. Selkirk, a 26-year-old kindergarten teacher in the Anna school district, left the house Monday morning for work, where she was to take her students on a daylong field trip to the Fort Worth Zoo.
She didn't get far. McKinney police said that about 7:10 a.m., she was driving south on Custer Road near Virginia Parkway when the dump truck hit her.
The truck driver, Alberto Espinosa, 28, of Plano was not injured in the crash, which remains under investigation, said McKinney police Capt. Randy Roland.
Someone from the school called Mr. Selkirk to ask whether his wife was ill because she had not arrived by 8 a.m.
"He was rather distraught and didn't know where she was, but had two choices: Call the police or drive her route to work," Mr. Lemmon said. "So he drove. He went to the scene and obviously recognized that it was his wife."
Ecstatic about baby
Friends and co-workers described the Selkirks' marriage as a good one, with each serving as a balance to the other. They were excited by the news of the baby, said Tamatha Parker, a friend of Mrs. Selkirk and an Anna Middle School teacher's aide.
"She e-mailed me a picture of the sonogram," Mrs. Parker said. "We were all talking about how we couldn't wait for that baby. Now she's not here. It's so sad."
Mrs. Selkirk's MySpace Web page is filled with photographs of her and her husband kissing, hugging and holding hands. It also includes a countdown until the birth of "Baby Selkirk," putting her at 16 weeks and six days pregnant with 171 days to go Monday.
In a fill-in-the-blank answer to the question "Who I'd like to meet," it says, "This little thing I got growing in my belly!"
Another entry reads: "We just bought our first house this summer and we love spending time at home. We just found out that we are pregnant and are so excited. Lately all we have had is baby on the brain. Our lives are getting ready to change forever!"
Shielding students
Mrs. Selkirk had been a kindergarten teacher in the Anna Independent School District for nearly three years and taught in the dual-language program.
News of her death spread quickly in Anna schools Monday. But school officials made a decision not to tell the kindergartners.
"Because of the age of the students, we're talking 5- and 6-year-olds, we feel it's better to send a note home with the students to let their parents talk to them about it first," Anna school Superintendent Joe Wardell said.
The kindergarten teachers and Dr. Wardell decided to let the students go to Fort Worth for their field trip as planned.
Counselors were at school Monday for the teachers and are to return today for students.
Bryant Elementary School and Central Campus principal Pete Slaughter said Mrs. Selkirk was one of those teachers who balanced being friendly to students with her role as a disciplinarian.
"She'd be silly with them, but she'd teach them. She had high expectations, but she could be fun," Mr. Slaughter said.
Wild about teaching
Last year Mrs. Selkirk set up her classroom with a jungle theme, with a paper tree on the wall along with zebra and leopard prints. Kids' work was framed in jungle patterns, and stuffed animals were all over the place.
Her family knew how important her students were to her, Mrs. Parker said. Every Christmas and birthday, they gave her supplies and learning tools for her classroom because they knew that's what she really wanted, she said.
Mrs. Parker's son, Jonah, was in Mrs. Selkirk's class last year.
"I told him: 'LeAnn is in heaven. She will never hurt again and her baby's with her. They'll never have to be separated. I know it's hard because we can't see her,' " Mrs. Parker said.
"And he said, 'That's what's going to be hard for me, not being able to see her and hug her.' "