A teacher’s aide who was killed in the Santa Fe High School shooting last week was working two jobs to support her suck husband and looking forward to retiring, according to reports.
Cynthia Tisdale, who aided in the art room at the Texas school, was one of 10 killed Friday when a gunman opened fire into multiple classrooms, ABC News reported.
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Tragically, Tisdale’s eldest son, League City Police Department Det. Recie Tisdale, Jr., was one of the officers who responded to the scene, WFAA reported.
When Recie Tisdale arrived on the scene, he was told that two teachers had been killed. After he learned that his mother was one of the victims, he was tasked with identifying her body.
“It was very hard to go from assisting others to being horribly affected by this tragic event,” Recie said in a statement Monday. “There are no words to explain how saddened my family is for everyone involved. Our prayers and thoughts are with everyone affected.”
Recie Tisdale’s youngest daughter, a student at the school, was late to class that day and wasn’t on campus when the shots broke out.
Tisdale, a member of Anchor Bible Baptist Church in Pharr, Texas, had a strong sense of faith, her brother-in-law, John Tisdale, told The Monitor.
“She was a believer in the Lord Jesus, and we know where she is right now,” John Tisdale.
Tisdale’s husband, the Rev. William Recie Tisdale, suffers from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, which causes scarring in the lungs and leads to breathing difficulties as well as a shortage of oxygen in the brain and other organs, according to a GoFundMe campaign to pay for stem cell treatment for his lungs.
Tisdale was her husband’s main caregiver, and she worked a second job as a server at an Italian restaurant at nights to help pay for his medical bills, her brother-in-law said.
“Since my brother has been very ill the last couple of years, she was a very excellent caregiver and she worked two jobs for extra income to help,” John Tisdale said.
William Tisdale described his wife as a “good woman” who “watched out” for him to the Washington Post. The pair was married for 46 years, according to WFAA.
In addition to her husband, Tisdale is survived by three children and eight grandchildren.
She was looking forward to “being a full-time grant” and retiring in the Rio Grande Valley with her husband, John Tisdale said.
“She was really attached and close to her children and grandchildren, and that was really her life and joy,” he said.
Tisdale’s funeral is Friday.
A GoFundme had already been set up prior to the horrific tragedy – if you’d like to make sure this family doesn’t have to worry about the stress of medical bills during this time, donate HERE.
(H/T: The Monitor)