As I finish up my second year of college, sometimes I forget to look back on the high school that got me to where I am today. The school that put everything into ensuring the success of its students. The teachers who worked tirelessly to help us achieve our greatest potential. The community that was there in support of all our endeavors.

This past week, though, I have looked back more than usual. I have felt the pull of a community that I have realized will never fade from my life.

A teacher who impacted the lives of so many in my small high school was killed in a car accident on the morning of March 12. At 57, he was much too young to leave us, and I grieve for the students who were yet to be touched by his kind and gentle spirit. While not present with them, I am grieving with my high school community in this time of tragedy and loss.

Not only an amazing teacher, this man had the incredible ability to connect with everyone. He was a role model, a mentor, and an amazing listener. I don’t know how he did it, but there was something about him that made you want to open up and talk to him about things that normally would have been hard for you to talk about. His face while he listened was one of intense interest and concern, and his response was never generic or scripted. His desire to help led him to respond with advice, encouragement, and support. He genuinely cared, and he made sure you knew that.

In the past week, I have read anecdotes, tributes, and letters to this man who left such a mark on our community. There have been stories from students, colleagues, friends, and family. All of these people have the same thing to say: their lives are better because they knew him. I can only say that I feel the same.

In the midst of the pain I feel from this loss, I also feel gratitude. Gratitude for the fact that our lives crossed paths for those few short years. Gratitude that God placed him into our community and into my life so that I could know him. Gratitude that through knowing him, I could have a model for the kind of person we should all be striving to be in life: selfless, sincere, and above all, caring. He was the embodiment of these things, and for his example, I am grateful.

It is easy for us to take for granted those people and things in our lives that we assume will always be there. But we must remember, nothing is guaranteed. What we have today could all be gone tomorrow. What would I have done if I knew this teacher would slip away from us like this? I would have thanked him one last time. I would have expressed the thoughts I have shared here. I would have made sure he knew that his life truly left a mark that will never fade. I am sure he would be proud to see his community rallying together in support of each other during this incredibly difficult time.

As I have struggled recently with the question of why bad things happen to good people, someone said to me that when God calls someone prematurely, it is because he needs that angel in heaven. I found comfort in those words and I am certain there is a beautiful new angel watching down on us today.