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EAST HAMPTON - With her "beautiful smile, kind heart and signature freckles," Cassandra Munson touched countless lives throughout her 15 years, her family said.
"Though our hearts are broken, we find comfort in knowing that the love Cassie shared will never fade," Cassandra's family said in her obituary. "Her beautiful smile, gentle spirit, artistic heart and joyful soul will remain with us always. While we cannot understand why her journey ended so soon, we are forever grateful for the 15 precious years we were blessed to share with her."
Cassandra, a student at East Hampton High School, died July 12 after falling off her paddleboard into the water of Crystal Pond in Eastford following a medial event.
Environmental Conservation Police from the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection responded to Crystal Pond at 12:15 p.m. on July 12 after getting a report of a person missing from a paddleboard, according to a statement from Bill Flood, a spokesperson for DEEP.
Flood said witnesses told police that Cassandra appeared to have had a medical emergency and fell into the water. She was pulled from the water by a good Samaritan who went into the pond to help find her when she disappeared under water, he said.
Flood said Cassandra received treatment onshore and was transported to Day Kimball Hospital where she was pronounced dead, Flood said.
The medical problem Cassandra may have experienced before falling off the paddleboard has not yet been determined. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said the cause of her death is pending further study and the manner of her death is pending investigation.
Since Cassandra's death, two fundraisers have been created to support her family.
A GoFundMe page created by Lisa Richards, Cassandra's aunt, to support Cassandra's parents and 11-year-old sister had raised more than $61,000 from 759 donors as of Tuesday afternoon.
Additionally, Portland-based cottage bakery Britt's Baking Company sold six-packs of cupcakes last Friday and Saturday to support Cassandra's family.
A vigil was held in Cassandra's honor last Friday night at Sears Park in East Hampton.
Born in Middletown, Cassandra spent her early childhood and attended school in Middletown before her family moved to East Hampton, her obituary states. She was a sophomore at East Hampton High School at the time of her death, said school Principal Eric Verner.
Calling her a "bright, creative and artistic young woman whose beautiful spirit shined wherever she went," Cassandra's family said in her obituary that Cassandra had a passion for painting and loved expressing herself through art. She was also a music lover who found joy in sharing music with people around her, her obituary states.
A talented dancer, Cassandra was a member of the Middletown dance school Stage Left Dance Company, where she shared her love of dance and performing, her obituary states. Yet one of Cassandra's greatest joys in life was spending time with her family and friends "creating memories that will be cherished forever," according to her obituary.
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