School tribute to ‘popular boy with a lovely smile’
A DERBY school has paid a touching tribute to one of its students who died after suffering an allergic reaction.
Muhammed Musa Akbar, known to family and friends as Musa, was playing football at his cousin’s birthday party in Powerleague, Pride Park, when he collapsed.
Medics tried desperately to save the 12-year-old, who was a student at Landau Forte College in the city, but he died three days later.
An inquest heard that he had eaten something that caused an allergic reaction, which lead to a cardiac arrest and culminated in him receiving fatal brain damage due to a lack of oxygen.
Now Musa’s school has revealed the heartbreak his friends and teachers went through following his death in 2019 and the touching way they have remembered him.
Alison Brannick, headteacher at Landau Forte College Derby (LFCD), said: “As a school community, we were absolutely devastated when our dear student Musa so tragically and suddenly passed away.
“Staff and students were deeply upset and it was so important that we all came together as a school community to support one another.
“We remember Musa as a popular and happy student, with a lovely smile and lots of friends who was well-liked by all staff.
“Many students and staff members attended Musa’s funeral and Mr Whiteley (Musa’s PE teacher) made a reading at the funeral.”
She added that Musa was a “very popular” student among his peers, and said the school has decided to memorialise him by retiring his locker.
“He loved sports, especially football which he played all of the time, before school, during breaks, and after school,” Ms Brannick said.
“Musa was kind and very popular, he was part of a close knit group of students and its fair to say they found it difficult to process his death.
“We wanted to work with our students and Musa’s family to ensure that his memory was forever kept alive at LFCD.
“That’s why we decided to retire Musa’s school locker and our students worked together to design a fitting tribute to Musa which has been engraved onto his locker door.
“We also hold an annual Year 8 (the year that Musa was in) house netball and football tournament in his memory, which Musa’s family attended and presented the winning team with their trophies. Unfortunately we were not able to hold the tournament this year due to Covid but we are sure it will be back on next year. In fact, Musa’s brother actually scored the winning goal in the first event!”
Ms Brannick said students also rallied together to help Musa’s family raise funds for charity in his memory.
“Our students desperately wanted something positive to come out of such a tragic event and we decided to support Musa’s dad who was fundraising to build a football court in Musa’s memory for KORT (Kashmir Orphans Relief Trust) orphanage in Pakistan,” she said. “He wanted the football court to look like the court we have at LFCD – a place that Musa loved – and we began our fundraising with non-uniform days on Musa’s birthday and our students organising themselves to sell samosas, drinks and sweets to their peers. Over two days our students raised £2,000 for the football court.
“The court was opened in Musa’s memory in October and Musa’s dad and representatives from KORT visited the school last week to thank our students for their contributions and show them a video of the football court – it looked amazing!
“We are very proud of the way our students have responded to this tragic event and so pleased that our school community has been able to offer some comfort to Musa’s family in such very sad circumstances.”
Our students desperately wanted something positive to come out of such a tragic event.
Alison Brannick
Muhammed Musa Akbar