The Lone Peak High School community is mourning after the unexpected loss of a beloved Spanish teacher.

“The best way to describe Kathy is she loved all things Lone Peak,” said Scott Sumner, the principal of Lone Peak High School. “She loved the students, loved working with them, loved seeing them be successful, challenged them to do better.”

Kathy Taylor, a 53-year-old Spanish teacher, died Sunday. Known at the school as “Senorita Taylor,” Taylor was a Lehi resident known for taking an interest in her students’ lives, volunteering with different school activities and groups and for her odd sense of humor. She had recently been recognized as the school’s Teacher of the Month.

Taylor had taught in the same classroom since the school opened in 1997. Among the many activities she could be seen at, she’d taken tickets at football games and kept track of scores at volleyball games.

“Kathy was one of the original members of Lone Peak that has helped build the successful culture that we’ve had in arts and academics and athletics, and we love her for that and love all things for Kathy,” Sumner said.

The school’s counseling department and the district’s crisis response team were available to meet with students and groups after a message about Taylor’s death was shared with students Tuesday morning.

The school also arranged for students to get out early Friday in order to be able to attend the 1 p.m. memorial services for Taylor.

Sumner said he spoke to Taylor’s mother on Sunday, who said that after Taylor’s father died, Taylor said that if anything happened to her, she’d love to have her memorial services during the school week so students could get out of school because of her.

About 200 students attended a candlelight vigil that included students singing songs, telling stories and ended with Lone Peak High School’s fight song.

“When I heard that was happening, I was like, that is so perfect for Kathy, because she was all things Lone Peak,” Sumner said.

Taylor was known for fostering a love of language in her students through her fun, yet challenging, class.

“She was very lighthearted and she used jokes a lot to teach,” said Eric Seamons, who was in Taylor’s Spanish classes from 2006 until 2009. “I think she used her humor to keep it engaging for students.”

Taylor was Seamons’ favorite teacher. He said he entered high school with depression, wasn’t able to study well for a Spanish test and failed. Taylor was understanding and let him retake the test the following day.

“I studied really hard and a few weeks later she called and told me I got the top score in the class,” Seamons said. “She said, ‘I wanted to tell you I am very proud of you.'”

Seamons developed a love of languages and went on to earn a Spanish minor in college, along with attend a study abroad in Mexico, where he met his wife.

“I don’t think any of that would have happened if it weren’t for her inspiration,” Seamons said.

He said Taylor loved to keep in contact with students after graduation and brought students every year to a foreign language fair at Brigham Young University.

He plans to take Friday off work in order to attend Taylor’s memorial services.

As many members of Rachelle Pew’s family who can make it plan to attend the services as well. Five of Pew’s children have been in Taylor’s classes. Her other two haven’t reached high school yet, but are now hesitant to take Spanish because Taylor was the reason they wanted to learn the language.

“She took her role and saw what she could do as a teacher,” Pew said.

Taylor encouraged Pew’s oldest son to take the Advanced Placement Spanish test. He passed, went on a Spanish-speaking mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and is now majoring in Spanish in college. Pew said Taylor also helped her daughter through hard times in school, and stayed with another student until 7 p.m. one night to help him study for a Spanish test he was stressed about.

“She just loved her students and was concerned about them,” Pew said.

Pew said her family was close to Taylor, who was raised in Orem, lived for a time in Spain and was the daughter of two teachers.

She said Taylor had a way of knowing things about her students no one could figure out how she learned. She also had an odd sense of humor, some of which revolved around the color red.

“She tells them on the first day that she hates redheads,” Pew said. “She’s a redhead.”

Taylor liked telling long, entertaining stories that would end with her stating it was a lie, or never revealing if it was true or not. In one, she claimed that wood chips were placed in the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C., in World War II so pilots wouldn’t get vertigo and crash.

Pew said Taylor was good friends with the school’s choir teacher and would help with tours.

Taylor taught her classes life lessons along with the material.

“She talked about how your honesty is going to stay with you longer than your letter grade,” said Emma Ricks, a senior at Lone Peak High School who was in Taylor’s AP Spanish class. “Don’t compromise something as small as a quiz for your integrity.”

Returning to class after Taylor’s death was difficult for Ricks’ class of 11 students. Ricks said the class, which feels like a family, met together to discuss how to continue the class.

Taylor has many stuffed animals in her classroom, along with a line of tape dubbed the “line of death” that students aren’t supposed to cross by her desk. Ricks said a student wants to cut out the tape and frame it.

Ricks said Taylor would tease her because they both have red hair, and she’ll remember her teacher for her many soapbox rants.

“She’s the sweetest person, the nicest person, and loves students more than their grade,” Ricks said.

Sumner expects most of the faculty to be at Taylor’s services Friday. In the days since her death, he’s watched as the school community has come together to support and love each other.

Her impact on the school can be seen across the district, as well. She pushed for the first semester to end right before winter break, instead of in January. After being piloted at Lone Peak High School for two years, the calendar change became district wide.

“She always had an idea, always had something to improve what we were doing,” Sumner said.