Boston student dies in Utah

Writing about how she wanted to conquer her shyness and build relationships, Elisa Santry of South Boston won a free spot in the Outward Bound Wilderness program this summer.

But on Sunday, the 16th day of her 22-day trip of backpacking and rafting, Santry somehow got separated from the rest of her group while on a hike in a rugged desert in 110-degree heat.

Santry eventually died, a quarter-mile from Canyonlands National Park in southern Utah. The 16-year-old's relatives, friends, and Outward Bound program officials are trying to sort out why she succumbed.

``We are anxious to get more information, but, more importantly, we are anxious to speak with the adults who were supervising her," said Mary O'Neil, an aunt. ``Who is that adult who said, `It's 110 degrees, and let's go hiking between the hours of 10 and 4?' Think about it; 110 degrees would be difficult to sit in in the shade. It's mind-boggling."

Santry was an outstanding student at a city exam school, the John D. O'Bryant School of Mathematics and Science in Roxbury, and was well liked at Sullivan's eatery on Castle Island, where she had worked for two years.

O'Neil said Santry's mother, Elisa Woods, had initially opposed her daughter's entrance into the program, fearful that something tragic would happen. The mother changed her mind at the last minute, after a mentor assigned to Santry convinced her that the trip was safe and a good opportunity. The teenager received a mentor as a part of the scholarship.

Santry's death was the second related to a program for Outward Bound in nearly three decades, said Mickey Freeman, president of the program.

In 1978, a participant fell off a rock in the Pacific Northwest, Freeman said. Other participants have died because of existing medical conditions, he said. Santry had passed a medical screening, Freeman also said.

Outward Bound officials said they had received conflicting reports from the four teenagers who were hiking with Santry before she disappeared.

According to some accounts, Santry, who would have been a junior this fall at the O'Bryant School, and the other teenagers had hiked into an area with brush so thick they had to push through it with their hands.

They were hiking one-quarter of a mile to the Colorado River to go rafting, and an instructor was waiting for them at the river for the rafting excursion.

Some students said they realized that Santry was missing after they emerged from the brush.

Others, however said they were not sure whether Santry had in fact followed them into the thick brush near the river.

Santry's body was found five hours after she was reported missing.

The sheriff's office in San Juan County released a statement saying that Santry had stayed behind to wait for a girl who had injured her ankle. Outward Bound officials disputed that account.

They said the injured girl had been evacuated before Santry and the other teenagers reached the last leg of the hike.

Results from an autopsy have not been released.

The desert temperature at the time of her death was 110 degrees, but a bottle with water in it was found with her body, raising doubts on dehydration as a cause of death.

In response to the questioning of Santry's aunt, Freeman said the students had been hiking in normal temperatures for that time of year, in a typical activity.

``Something happened, but we don't know what," he said.

The program encourages a buddy system, but Freeman said students sometimes travel by themselves, at their own pace, especially in the latter days of a long trip. Santry did not have an assigned buddy.

Santry had competed with 1,200 other teenagers for 100 scholarships for a number of summer programs around the nation.

Among these was Outward Bound, according to Summer Search, which administers scholarships for programs. Judges liked Santry's desire to be bold and evidence that she cared for others, said Nancy Sterling , a spokeswoman for Summer Search.

``What struck people in the program the most is how altruistic she was," Sterling said.

She often helped care for her father, William Santry, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease, Sterling said.

A friend, as well as a co-worker at Sullivan's, both emphasized the teenager's caring nature.

``She's a person you could depend on, and you could always talk to her," said Bridget Foley , 15, a friend. ``She's very giving."

At school, Santry had a 3.7 grade point average and took college-level and honors classes, Sterling said.

She spoke about wanting to go to college and study criminal justice or political science, Foley said.

Chris Lane , a manager at Sullivan's, said of Santry: ``She was absolutely the sweetest girl. She got along with everyone."