Danvers High Moves To Dedicate Colleen E. Ritzer Memorial Library

DANVERS, MA — A move to honor the legacy of kindness, caring and inspiration of Colleen Ritzer by naming the Danvers High School library after her on the 10th anniversary of her murder is under consideration for School Committee approval.

Danvers High math teacher Julie Glynn, a colleague of Ritzer, who was killed in a school bathroom at 24 years old on Oct. 22, 2013, presented the proposal to the School Committee Monday night following a survey of school faculty and with the blessing of the Ritzer family.

"When a library is named in someone's memory it strengthens the sense of community by reminding everyone of the values and virtue that person embodied," Glynn said. "It also ensures that their memory lives on. Not just for those who knew her but for future generations to come."

The Andover native's impact on Danvers Public Schools has continued in the decade since her death with the annual Day of Kindness across the district on Oct. 22 each year. Her memory has also inspired the annual Step Up for Colleen 5K in Andover, which has attracted thousands of participants.

Flynn told the School Committee that a faculty poll drew 96 percent in favor of naming the library after Ritzer, 4 percent undecided and no opposition. She said Ritzer's family had expressed to her "full support" of the move and that they were "always hoping to find a way for Colleen to be a permanent fixture at the high school."

"We believe this is a meaningful step to show the family, staff and community that Colleen will always be remembered," Glynn said.

Superintendent Dan Bauer told Patch on Tuesday that the proposal was brought to him at the start of the school year and that his desire was to help move it through the proper channels to make it a reality.

"So much thoughtfulness went into the whole process," Bauer said. "You can see that this building is galvanized with tremendous support in looking to preserve a legacy. The presentation (Monday night) was very moving and when the faculty unifies around something it always says a lot."

The proposal was given a first reading on Monday with a discussion and possible final vote on naming the Colleen E. Ritzer Libary at Danvers High set for the Oct. 30 School Committee meeting.

The Class of 2015 is also raising money in hopes of treating the staff to lunch on Monday — the day after the anniversary of Ritzer's death — through the spirit of #Kindness4Colleen. Panini Pizzeria of Danvers is offering a discount on the pizza with any remaining funds donated to the Colleen Ritzer Memorial Fund.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to field donations for the lunch and Memorial Fund donations here. More on the fund, scholarship, and Ritzer's legacy can be found here.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at [email protected]. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)