Community members have been quick to support a fundraising campaign for the family of a Bellefonte teenager who died while swimming at Raystown Lake on Saturday.
A GoFundMe for the family of 16-year-old Nathan Dan has raised nearly $10,000 of its $15,000 goal as of 3 p.m. on Monday, just hours after the page was created.
“Please support Nathan’s family as they go through this devastating loss,” Shanna Servant, the organizer of the campaign, wrote. “We are hoping to ensure Nathan’s family doesn’t have to carry the financial burden of the memorial on top of everything else they are enduring. Any and all support is truly appreciated.”
Emergency responders were dispatched at about 5:15 p.m. Saturday when the teen went underwater while swimming at the lake near the Susquehannock Campground in Huntingdon County and did not resurface. He was found dead after a search involving state police, Marklesburg and Smithfield fire companies, the state Fish and Boat Commission, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Huntingdon County Coroner’s Office.
Nathan was a sophomore at Bellefonte Area High School and an athlete who most recently played lacrosse. He attended Bellefonte schools since starting at Pleasant Gap Elementary and was “a valued member of our school community,” Bellefonte Area High School principal Michael Fedisson wrote in a message to families on Sunday.
“I know that he deeply touched the lives of many,” Fedisson wrote. “The passing of such a bright and energetic young individual is an immense loss that has left a void in all of us.”
The Bellefonte boys lacrosse and baseball teams will be wearing Nathan’s No. 15 on their helmets during postseason play, according to a post on the Bellefonte Lacrosse Facebook group.
Counseling services have been made available to Bellefonte students and staff, and Keystone Exams scheduled for Monday were postponed.
“We offer our deepest sympathies to Nathan’s family,” Fedisson wrote. “Please join us in remembering Nathan and keeping his family in your thoughts during this incredibly challenging time.”
