SCHOOLFRIENDS of a little girl who died after falling from a bedroom window during a game of hide and seek have helped to create a memorial to her.
Four-year-old Jackie-Danielle Velvick died in December 2003 after plunging 20ft from a first floor window at her home in Longfield Road, Trowbridge.
On Friday her mother, Cher, and brothers Brandon, nine, and Jordan, 10, were at Longmeadow Primary School as a sundial peace garden in her memory was officially unveiled.
Miss Velvick, who is due to give birth in a few weeks, said: "It is a good thing to do for the kids. The boys have really enjoyed mucking in with it. We are all trying to get on with our lives, we can't do anything else, but it is nice to have something like this."
Her daughter died a week after tumbling out of her brother's bedroom window, suffering critical head injuries. Children at the school where she was a pupil were asked to come up with ideas and drawings for Jackie's Garden, which were then incorporated into the final design.
It is in a quiet area of the school grounds and has a bench where youngsters can sit and plants that, in the summer months, will attract bees and butterflies.
Senior teacher Kerri Betteridge said: "The children have been waiting for this for some time so we are really pleased it is finally finished. We hope not only the children but their parents will come and sit in Jackie's garden."
The memorial was officially opened by Trowbridge's newly elected mayor, Arthur Ransom.
He said: "It is a good idea to do something like this for the children. It will help them understand that life isn't forever and that sometimes circumstances are completely different from what they expect."
Also at the unveiling ceremony was former town mayor and school governor Grace Hill.
She said: "I think the school has done a lovely job with the memorial and it is great we can remember Jackie-Danielle through the garden.
"The family is still in our thoughts and we hope they will know this garden will always be here for them."
The school was presented with a cheque for £200 from Wessex Water as part of the company's Conservation Foundation, which provides funds for environmental projects.
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