NEW CASTLE, Pa. – Friends and family are mourning the loss of a 9-year-old Pennsylvania girl who died after a sleepover last weekend, according to WPXI.
Fifth grader Sophia Daugherty, who had Type 1 diabetes, suffered a traumatic brain injury after her blood sugar plummeted.
For several days, doctors worked to save her life. Sophia, whose hypoglycemic attack had caused brain swelling and a herniated brain stem, was pronounced dead at 3:44 p.m. Wednesday, according to the New Castle News.
“She was a popular little girl,” said Laurel Superintendent Len Rich. “The most commonly used adjective was sweet, sweet Sophia.”
Sophia played basketball and softball for Laurel Elementary School and was also a member of the Girl Scouts, according to the paper.
With roughly 80 other students in her grade, everyone knew Sophia, according to WPXI. Counselors from the community as well as the high school are working with those who knew her.
“One thing we believe is it’s best for us to be here together,” Rich told WPXI. “It’s normal to grieve, it’s normal to cry, it’s normal to feel terrible, it’s normal not to understand why. But it’s better that we all go through it together and we rely on one another.”
