OREM — The flag outside of Orem High School seems to be at a permanent state of half-staff.
It was taken to half-staff Monday after officials received word of the deaths of student Joseph and alumnus Daniel Fairbanks in a traffic accident in Arizona over the Thanksgiving Day weekend.
It stayed down in memory of another student, Sydney Lyn Olsen, 15, who was discovered dead in a submerged car in Utah Lake on Monday.
It will stay in mourning position until after the memorials and funerals are over next week.
Danny Miller, who teaches and coaches at the school and who is the bishop of the Fairbanks' LDS ward, says he believes the student body is being asked to cope with just about as much as it can handle.
"The two (Fairbanks) boys were real active in different areas. They were good students, very popular," Miller said.
Daniel Fairbanks graduated with his class last May. Joseph Fairbanks was a junior.
Olsen was a perky sophomore who was "extremely popular with her classmates," said counselor John Williams. "She had a lot of friends."
Her funeral is scheduled for Saturday at 11 a.m. in the Park 4th Ward chapel, 50 S. 750 West, Orem.
Williams said the school is in a much better position to help students dealing with the loss of a peer than several years ago when the high school lost 11 students and associates in a single year.
"At that time, we sat down and said, 'We have to have a plan in place,' " he said.
Now, teachers and administrators are trained in grief assistance. They have support texts in hand and a hotline to the district crisis management team.
"We know more now," Williams said. "We know it's better if the students are told by someone they know and trust. We give them the information in small groups as soon as possible, before rumors start to fly. We ask the teachers to inform everyone at the same time and to dedicate a good part of their class to discussion and questions."
Williams said students are told where they can get help and find a listening ear. Teachers know to carefully observe their students and help them find a private place where they can deal with their grief."
Miller said a memorial service planned for the Fairbanks family on Tuesday, Dec. 5, beginning at 11 a.m. in the Sharon Park LDS Stake Center, 50 E. 700 North in Orem, following a funeral in Boise on Saturday.
Four members of the Orem family died in Page, Ariz., when a pickup truck driven by an 18-year-old crossed the center line and collided head-on with the Fairbanks car. Police are investigating the possibility that alcohol may have been a factor and are waiting for verification from blood tests before filing any charges, said public information officer Mark Hall.
Wayne and Elaine Fairbanks and their two teenage sons died at the scene, leaving another son, David, on a mission in Illinois, three married children and 10 grandchildren behind. Hall said the two passengers in the rear seat were not wearing seat belts. He did not know whether those passengers were the boys or included one of the parents.
Miller said Elder Fairbanks is being allowed to fly home for the funeral and memorial services but will return to complete his mission shortly thereafter.
Miller said the younger boys reflected the family's philosophy of commitment to giving and sharing.
Wayne Fairbanks was the Sharon Park 5th Ward organist and worked with the youth. Elaine Fairbanks taught the Family History classes and often urged others to become involved in genealogy.
"They were very, very active, very strong. They were kind of an anchor family," Miller said.
Those wishing to donate to the Fairbanks family may contribute to a fund set up through Key Bank and the Utah County Journal (853-5300). Richard Fairbanks, a brother to Wayne Fairbanks, said funds will go toward funeral expenses and establishing a start-up fund for Elder Fairbanks when he finishes his mission.