According to sources at West Cumberland Junior High, Stasiak, who was entering his final year at the school, is "in the thoughts" of all those who knew him on a day-to-day basis.
"Josh was just the greatest," said fellow eighth grader and remote acquaintance Louise McGough. "I didn't know him all that good, but he was just an inspiration in everything he did. Everyone really misses him."
According to his grieving mother Maxine, Josh, who routinely failed to touch the lives of those around him while he was alive, would be happy to know that his death has brought him new-found popularity.
"Josh was a quiet kid; never had more than five friends in his whole life," she said. "I wish he'd have lived to see all those kids, who hardly ever said a word to him, hold aloft such nice commemorative banners with Josh's name on the front. He'd have liked that."
Meanwhile, Saturday's funeral service is expected to draw hundreds of Josh's friends, family members and classmates, marking the single largest concentration of genuine interest in the tragic boy's former existence.
Image credit: creative commons. Christian_238