Zelene Blancas, the teacher who touched the hearts of millions after posting a video of her students hugging, died of COVID.
Zelene taught Spanish at Dr. Sue A. Shook Primary School in El Paso and was on her way to becoming a bilingual special education teacher.
11/30/2018
@blancas_DSSE / Twitter
It gained national – and even worldwide – attention in 2018, after posting a video of students leaving for a weekend. Upon leaving, they embraced in a show of affection and love that produced 23 million views.
Zelene tested positive for coronavirus in late October and ended up in the hospital shortly after diagnosis. She spent almost 2 months in the ICU and when things got desperate financially last month, her brother opened a GoFundMe account in her name.
She died on Monday from COVID complications.
His death affected much of El Paso. In addition to teaching, Zelene gave night literacy classes to her parents. During the pandemic, she delivered food and other items to the homes of some of her students.
Zelene was 35 years old.
REST IN PEACE