Joe Garcia, 48, died just two days after his wife, Irma Garcia, 46, a teacher at Uvalde’s Robb elementary school, was killed. The husband of a fourth-grade teacher killed in this week’s mass shooting at a Texas elementary school has died from a heart attack. Joe Garcia was preparing for the funeral of Irma Garcia, his high school sweetheart, and wife of 24 years when he collapsed and died on Thursday. The two are survived by four children, according to the report. Shortly before his fatal heart attack, journalists recorded Joe Garcia dropping flowers off at a cross with his wife’s name written on it.
Irma Garcia, 46, was one of two teachers killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, along with 19 children. As per the reports and briefed by the relatives Irma Gracia and her co-teacher Eva Mireles died during the protest against the shooter to protect their children. The Garcias’ nephew, John Martinez, said via Twitter that the couple’s children – ages 13, 15, 19, and 23 – had now lost both parents.
My Tia Irma and Joe garcia were high school sweethearts and leave behind 4 beautiful children, their ages being 23, 19, 15 and the youngest only being 13 years old, no child should have to go through this, my heart breaks for them
— john martinez ❤️🔥 (@fuhknjo) May 26, 2022
Irma Garcia taught fourth-grade students at Robb elementary, in a mostly Hispanic community about 85 miles west of San Antonio, where she had worked for 23 years. On her profile on the school’s website, she wrote that she and Joe, 48, enjoyed barbecuing, listening to music, and vacationing at the nearby community of Concan, which sits along Texas’ Frio River.
The couple’s first child – one of two boys – was completing boot camp with the Marines, and their second, another son, was attending Texas State University, according to the profile. The two youngest children, both daughters, are a high school sophomore and a seventh-grader.
“She’s always been optimistic about everything and just so loving with the people in her life,” said Mr. Martinez, 21, a student at Texas State University. When the authorities went inside the classroom moments after the shooting, Mr. Martinez said, they “found her body there, embracing children in her arms pretty much until her last breath.”
