Stanley Cup visit to help launch foundation to honor Milton teen
The head coach of the Vegas Golden Knights will bring the Stanley Cup to Massachusetts to help launch the Cassidy Murray Foundation — a nonprofit honoring a 13-year-old Milton girl who was killed in Aruba last year, her family said in a statement.
The foundation is dedicated to increasing access to mental health resources after tragedies, the family said. During a family vacation in March 2022, Cassidy was struck and killed by a boat while tubing. For 15 months, her parents, Linda and Dave Murray, have dealt with immense heartache.
“We learned instantly the unimaginable depth of pain that washes over you when a loved one is taken so senselessly,” Linda Murray said in the statement. “We grieve every hour of every day. But we are able to find some degree of strength to stand and honor our daughter’s legacy because of a wonderful grief therapist who came into our lives in those first dark days.”
Since the fatal incident, the Murrays have pushed for stricter boating safety rules in Aruba, meeting with officials such as Congressman Stephen Lynch, Consul General Margy Bond, and Aruban Prime Minister Evelyn Wever-Croes. They’ve requested that spotters and engine kill-switches be mandatory on boats, along with safety training for drivers.
Coach Bruce Cassidy will bring the Stanley Cup to the charity’s launch event on July 13, the family said. His daughter, Shannon Cassidy, was a classmate of Cassidy Murray’s at Buckingham Browne and Nichols School in Cambridge.
“Julie and I marvel at Linda and Dave’s commitment to helping others despite a crushing grief that few of us can even imagine,” Bruce Cassidy said in a statement. “Cassidy Murray would have been with our family celebrating this summer had life not taken such a cruel and terrible twist. We cannot think of a better way to honor this beautiful girl and her parents’ noble commitment to others than by coming to Boston to bring attention to the foundation in her name.”
Last year, days after the tragedy, he presented Dave, Linda, and their son Adam Murray with a jersey with Cassidy Murray’s name and favorite number, the family said.
The Murray family has been seeing a therapist to work through their loss, Dave Murray said. He said they were fortunate to find someone to talk to, especially at a time when mental health services are in such high demand, and wishes to help others through this process.
“You’re lucky if you can find someone,” Dave Murray said. “Then you need to figure out if you can afford them since many don’t take insurance. This is all heartbreakingly new and unfamiliar to us, but we feel it is part of our mission to help others navigate this process in some small way.”