Teen struck and killed by train

Another example of irresponsible journalism that sickens and outrages us. While perhaps the Cook County Medical Examiner has rendered an OPINION, we will NEVER accept this as fact. Your insensitivity to this tragic, and beyond devastating loss this child’s family is suffering is beyond human comprehension. How could you write and publish such exploitation in the name of good journalism? Have you no moral fibre or even more simply, compassion? Shame on YOU! By the grace of God, may you never experience the tragic loss of a beautiful child’s life cut short.

I never knew Michael, but my son did and thought highly of him. This is tragic no matter how it happened, and it is hard to conceive how one could deal with this as a parent. My most sincere prayers for comfort and sympathies are with the parents and family of Michael.

However, I am not sure that I consider this irresponsible reporting. If that is in fact the best assessment of the investigation, I would prefer as a parent of another child and member of the community to know about it. Why? Because if in fact it appears to be suicide then this would make the second apparent suicide involving a Barrington High student and a train in six months. Can that be a coincidence or should this be something as a parents, schools and community that we attempt to understand and hopefully prevent in the future? I am fine with my son believing it was an accident and I truly want to believe it was as well.

However, I am finding it difficicult to conceive that two kids, 6 months apart can just accidentally wander in front of moving trains. If you are sitting in your car at the tracks waiting for a train with windows up and the stereo on full blast you can not only hear the train whistle but also feel it coming.

If this is another suicide, as parents, school and community shouldn’t we try to understand why? Wouldn’t that help us to assure this never happens again?

THIS DISGUSTS ME. i know your probably wondering why a student is on this. but i heard about this disturbing artice that is painfully untrue and hard to read.first off. this was NO suicide. i go to barrington hs. and knew mike. ive gone to school with him for 4 years. he was the last kid to have ever done something like this, ask anyone that knew him or of him. THIS IS NOT THE CORRECT STORY. and how can anyone even be sure from an autopsy that it was even a suicide. this angers me so much that someone could write such a thing on someone and a situation that they dont even have full evidence on. and considering you didnt even know him, how could anyone completly blame this on parents. it does seem logical that it would be a suicide. but not knowing him. he was happy funny and full of life all the time. and would have no reason to do this. show some sympathy. a 14 year old died and it affects everyone even if it was a suicide or not. did u ever think of getting the conducters prospective on this, the one that saw it all? well ask him and he will tell you.

This article is outraging to anyone and everyone who knows Mike. Suicide and accidents are VERY different stories and causes of death. This report was made prematurely and deeming this tragedy a suicide is wrong. I knew Mike personally, and in no way, shape, or form was he anywhere close to a suicidal person.
The train had no horn, because the neighborhoods it went through were complaining about it being too loud. I believe from what I’ve heard was that Mike was listening to his iPod and walking. When he realized the train was coming, he tried to move, but tripped.

I can’t believe this article could say it was suicide.

We are very sorry for the loss of your friend. We admit the headline was insensitive and we have changed it, we sincerely apologize. The initial line in the content was not meant to be hurtful, but rather asking the natural human response of “Why?” presuming that the coroner’s report was true. Since it was being read the wrong way, we have removed that as well. We did not write the article, it is an excerpt from an article in Courier News, which we thought the attribution links made obvious — we are not journalists, but are a news aggregator similar to Topix.

Nobody is placing any blame on this young man’s parents. Please do not make a loose connection between our domain name and this story. The name is simply an expression of how we as parents do the best we can and are not perfect — an unobtainable goal. We think that’s something most parents can agree with. Our site is not here to indict so-called bad parents. We cannot even *imagine* what his parents must be going through and no matter what the truth is we would not place blame on them.

You are all very intelligent and well thought out reporters. So, how does it feel to be lied to? People close to the Cecala Family don’t appreciate it. I don’t care for trashy and uneducated people like you. I can’t even think of a word, not one single word, to describe how vial and disgusting these articles are.

Mikey was one of my best friends. He might have been the most genuine person anyone could ever know. Since the incident on Sunday, all I have been thinking about is the last things we said to each other. He asked me if I was busy over the weekend and I said, “No I’ll call you. We should definitely hang-out.”

Mikey was the kind of spontaneous person that you could never keep track of. He would show up on my bus by surprise and tell ME that he had canceled MY plans to hang out with him. He was the greatest. To even utter the word suicide in relation to Mikey is morally unjust and wrong. He was happy-go-lucky and always knew what to say. If you were down, he cheered you up. I am a freshman in High school at BHS and sadly only knew him since Fifth grade. But let me tell you, from the first time we saw each other, we automatically connected. I guess what I am trying to say is, reporters that put horrible things up like this are only making the situation worse. And it is sad that this story was the top story on some news programs. Dark, distressed, suicidal? These are the words that reporters are making Mikey out to be? Genuine, loyal, trustworthy, incredible. These are the words to remember Mikey Cecala by, and reporters will never be able to change that.

it is virtually impossible to be “accidentally” struck by a train. even if you had headphones on and were listening to loud music, which would be an unconscionably stupid thing to do, you wouldn’t miss the rumbling of the train and the horn which would have been sounded at shoe factory crossing.
the kid obviously killed himself. if you are saying he didn’t, then you are calling the kid stupid.

I started reading the comments and had to stop. I am Michaels aunt and Godmother, I have the privelage and honor to say that. We are for lack of a better term devistated. Michael, weather he died because it was an accident or a choice he made or some lousy mistake or whatever else was a young boy full of love and life and for those of you who did not know him personally, I am sorry. I am sorry because you will never know his laughter and his warmth and his generosity. You will never know the qualities that made Michael Michael. There are so many amazing children out there that warm our hearts in some way in every family, children who touch our lives somehow everyday. Mikey was not the only one. He was special and I loved him and his mother and his father loved him but more importantly his brother Joey loved him. He is reading everything! He will be 16 in just a few short months and this will be the 2nd time in his life that his birthday will not be shared with his brother. The first time was the year Mikey wasn’t yet born and now. Their birthdays were only one month apart. Please put into perspective and take into consideration his feelings. It’s difficult enough as an adult to understand the trials we face in life and to make sense of the “unknown.” Imagine our children, all of them. How can we expect them to wrap their brains around why tradgedies happen? To the world I say this, Mikey was a young boy that was called upon by God (however you percieve him to be), for me it is Jesus, my Lord and and saviour and I thank him for the short time he shared Mikey with me and my family. It will never be forgotten.
I try and try to think of ways to express who he was to those who didn’t know and even to those who did, but unfortunately it was all in his big and beautiful hazel green eyes that mesmerized and in the smile that carried the big teeth that crossed his face and in the arms that were oddly long and embraced life and in the stride that carried his young and healthy body and in the heart that was open freely to the world that drew you in helplessly and in the innocent spirit that warmed the room unknowingly and in the soul of one of the most gentle and innocent people I have ever known and in the sound of his laughter that swallowed us whole and mostly in the God given talent to irritate the s*** out of us because he could. To you My precious Michael I say thank you my love for showing us all how we’re supposed to live and love and laugh. I believe that that was your lifes purpose and you fulfilled it in the greatest way. God rest you my love.
See you soon, Huma

“K” you may be the most unsensitive person I have ever come across and I know nothing about u except for your awful comment. To say that it is impossible to be accidentally struck by a train is completely false and very sickening. You should not go shooting off your mouth with out knowing what is going on first. Mikey was an AMAZING person and would NEVER have done something like that. If you would have read previous comments before posting yours you would have seen that the train did not use a horn. (You stupidly said you could not miss the sound of a horn.) Because you used absolutely no common sense and seem to have no compassion you are causing even more pain for people who are already heart broken. I hope you rethink your disgusting comments.

K,you are stupid!!!! Obviosly you are very ignorant!!!! I wish it was you that was accidentally hit by the train instead of Mikey. If you knew him you would never say the awful things you have said about him and his family. He was an awesome kid who has wonderful parents and a brother who LOVE him very much!!! This was a tragic ACCIDENT,Mikey LOVED LIFE and would never have done anything to hurt his family on purpose….If you have nothing good to say about Mikey or his family then just shut up!!!
His family is hurting very much and do not need to hear the B******* you are saying…I hope u r not a parent because if you are I feel sorry for the child or children u have.

this website is horrible. i cant believe it even exists. if its not hard enough already to have lost a friend/classmate/son/grandson, then knowing that this article exsists and the ignorant insensitive comments on it, makes it even worse. (if thats even possible)

we all miss mike. and to have ever come across this, is sickening and makes it that much worse.

There was no autopsy done! there doesn’t need to be when the cause of death is obvious. I don’t know where it’s coming from but to set it straight Michael died because he was hit by a train. That is the autopsy! It doesn’t matter anyway. He’s gone.

Let me start off by saying I am Michael’s uncle. For those who have written positive remarks regarding the accidental death of this beautiful boy, I would like to Thank You from the bottom of my heart. For the others, I pray you do not have to learn the hard way what it feels like to have someone ripped away from your life.

Mikey was a special kid, I am his uncle through marriage but I love him as I love my own two boys. The first time I met Mikey was when he was four years old at a family get together hosted by his parents. It was my second date with Maha, and she brought me to their family get together which was held at one of the sibling’s homes every Sunday. Needless to say I was a little uncomforatble being there, as it was only our second date. Everyone was really nice to me, but Mikey stole my heart that day. I was sitting on the couch, and on my left was Maha’s father and on my right was her uncle. Maha’s father (Mikey Grandafther) was not very talkative, but he was polite. Her uncle was very talkative and asked me endless questions. Not to mention Maha’s sister grilling me about my job, education, my beliefs and so on. Mikey,at four yearsold now, must have sensed how uncomforatble I was. He jumped on my lap, gave me a big hug and said “Hi my name is Mikey, whats yours?” That little precious boy stole my heart that day and never gave it back. He sat with me the rest of the night and he made me laugh and giggle with his stories and that smile. God, I love him!

Another story about Mikey, that shows what kind of person he is and how he was raised is evident in this story. My wife and I were at Joe and Mona’s house, Mikey was about 7 years old at the time. I had to leave their house to attend a different function. Maha, with Mikey standing next to her,asked if I had money for gas. I said I did not have any money with me. Mikey takes off to his room and about a minute later comes down with a $20 dollar bill and hands it to me. I said “Mikey what is this for?” and he said “you need money for gas”. God bless his innocent heart. He had no idea I could have easily used my debit card for the gas. But that was the essence of Mikey, if anyone was in need, he would help. Those are values that were taught to him by his parents to be loving, thoughful and to help those in need.

I have so many stories about what makes Mikey such a great person. I have hundreds of pictures of Mikey, and in about 70% percent of them he is hugging, kissing or playing with all the kids and babies in our family. Mikey always went everywhere with his parents, he loved being around the family. He was so funny, no matter what he did it made you laugh. Mikey was raised by parents who loved and nurtured him with all their heart. They lived their lives for their kids. As I stated earlier, their are so many stories about his family of how they help, love and support one another.

I am sitting here writing this, and I can’t believe Mikey is not here. None of this seems real, I keep pinching myself trying to wake up from a bad dream. I keep waiting for him to walk through the door. I also have to watch these loving parents, his brother, as well as the rest of the family and friends grieve over the loss of Mikey. I look into Joe and Mona’s eyes, and see the pain and anguish they are going through, and it hurts so much because I cannot stop the pain that they are feeling. I feel so helpless, between the pain I feel for Mikey and the pain I feel for the family. I want so much to help Joe, Mona and Joey, but nothing will ever be the same. We lost a piece of our heart and soul that day, and it can never be filled.

I love Mikey as if he was my own son. I have two boys 6 & 3 who want to learn how to play hockey just like Mikey. I also want them to have the same loving ideals he possessed…kind, giving, loving, friendly, funny and yes sometimes annoying. When my kids join a hockey team I will request they have the same jersey number as Mikey to honor his memory.

I love you Mikey, don’t worry we are here for your parents and Joey. We will all be together once more.

With all my heart and love,
Uncle Tony

one word-BULLSHIT! i knew mike for 5 years, no way my friend killed himself. everyone who thinks that he did obviously didnt know him, so go to another site and post ur rude remarks elsewhere, in a few days it’ll be one month, and Im still feeling it full force.

“k” your a bitch.