It is with a heavy heart that AHS announces the tragic passing of Yaribeth Garcia on Sept. 9, 2020. Ms. Garcia was an instructional aide and one-on-one assistant in Mr. Laird Anderson’s special education class. She worked in multiple classrooms throughout the district over the course of her career. She was 26 years old. 

Ms. Garcia had been working in Mr. Anderson’s Special Education class since the summer of 2019. Mr. Anderson explained her work with her one-on-one Special Education student: “Her primary responsibility was to help that one student navigate the campus, attend classes, complete his work, turn in his work, and be with him throughout the day.”

Mr. Anderson also praised her “positive outlook on life” and how easy she was to work with. She “put the kids first, really cared about the students and their well-being, never complained, and enjoyed coming to work and being with the students.” He loved that she “always had a smile on her face.” 

Benicia Gomez, who first met Ms. Garcia when they started working in the same Special Education class at Dana Middle School two years ago, spoke very highly of Ms. Garcia as well. She described her as “very kind and patient with all the kids, especially with her one-on-one student,” as well as “very easy to get along with” and “sweet, thoughtful, and funny.” “I am going to miss her very much,” Ms. Gomez said, “and her big, warm smile.” 

Ms. Garcia’s boyfriend, Vicente, described Yaribeth as a “warrior” and a “kind, amazing mother.” He said that she was “good at working with kids” and “loved working with the school district.” He promised that their 10-month-old son will know everything about her. 

Ms. Garcia’s passing will be felt deeply by our community and by the special needs students she helped throughout her career. It is clear that she was devoted to her work and she brought joy to everyone around her. Although she was only in the classroom for about a year, her impact will be remembered by her coworkers and her students. She will be greatly missed by our school district, her family, and her friends. A GoFundMe has been created in her name to help her family through this difficult time and can be visited by clicking here. 

Photo courtesy of FACEBOOK.COM