Students, staff mourn the loss of beloved math teacher

MESA, Ariz. (KSAZ) - Today, students and staff at Mesa High School are honoring the memory of a man who taught here for four years.

Flags are flying half-staff as everyone tried to come to terms with what happened over the weekend.

"He was a great teacher and one of the ones who genuinely cared about his students," said Karson, a student.

Mr. Zahner was inspiring, that's what we continued to hear from Mesa High students all morning. Many wore purple, one of the school's colors, to pay tribute to their beloved math teacher and remembered the impact he had and the memories he helped create.

"In photography one year, I got assigned to him and I had to go take pictures of him," said Chanelle, a student. "He was so funny. He had me Photoshop pictures of him... and all of his ideas were just... he had such a good sense of humor."

Even those who didn't take his class cared about him, which is made clear as this campus comes together in the face of tragedy.

"It's really cool to see what we're all a big family and we care about everyone here," said Brielle, a student.

This is a truly devastating loss for this community, so the district tells us they will have additional councilors here on campus today for anyone who needs that extra support.