A Carroll Gardens elementary school is coming together to memorialize a student who passed away last year from cancer.

Eliana Zakhnini-Messineo was 9-years-old when she died in 2024 of Ewing-Sarcoma, a type of cancer that often occurs in children and young adults. To honor her memory, students, parents and teachers at P.S. 58, as well as members of the wider Carroll Gardens community, are creating a memorial garden and a dedicated library shelf for the young girl who was loved throughout her school.

"Eliana was very smart, very generous," said her mother, Marianne Messineo. "She loved science and art. She loved cats. She was always ready to help others, yet she was rather shy and didn't like to be the center of attention."

Julie Criniere, Zakhnini-Messineo's kindergarten teacher

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