Southport teacher dies after fall from homecoming float
SOUTHPORT, Ind (WISH) — The community of Southport is heartbroken after the tragic death of a high school English teacher. Megan Woodward, 29, was decorating a float Thursday for Friday’s homecoming celebration when she fell, sustaining a head injury.
Laura Blaydes tearfully remembered her best friend and said it’s the little things she’ll miss. Blaydes, also a teacher, got to know Woodward well when they worked together at North Central High School in Farmersburg, Indiana.
“I learned of the accident that day. Her husband called me to tell me,” she said.
It’s not her death that she wants her friend to be remembered by. Blaydes said, above anything else, Woodward’s husband and two daughters, ages 7 and 21 months, were most important in her life. “She was one of the most loving mothers that I have been around. Her kids were her priority. It’s sad,” Blaydes said.
Woodward was a gifted English teacher, but it was her ability to reach kids beyond the classroom that made her a standout in Southport. “Megan has always been the type of person that wanted to find ways to help people out in need,” Blaydes said.
One example is the Go Fund Me page Woodward created for Ethan Knox. Last year, Knox, who graduated from the high school earlier this year, was forced to take care of himself after his mom died unexpectedly. Woodward immediately went into action to help him out.
“Not only that, but she was behind the scenes coordinating tons of calls and questions, news people, so that I could continue with school,” Knox said. He is now a freshman at Purdue University and attended Southport’s homecoming Friday.
“It helped a lot going to the homecoming game and seeing all those people. It was the sense of community. They had a moment of silence for her,” he remembered.
According to Blaydes, Woodward was an organ donor. Blaydes set up a Go Fund Me page to helpWoodward’s husband and daughters.