As the investigation into Zoe Welsh’s murder deepens, and the details of the suspect’s lengthy criminal history are exposed, a community is also grieving the loss of a woman who had a reputation as a special teacher.
On Wednesday, the Welsh family released a statement.
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"Zoe Welsh brought a smile to the face of everyone she met, and she was an incredible colleague, teacher, friend, sister and mother," the statement reads. "Known for her commitment to learning and bringing fun to her classroom each day, her work as an educator left a deep and meaningful impact on her students and our wider community.
"While words cannot capture our heartbreak, we take comfort in knowing how many lives she touched and appreciate the support that has been extended to our family during this difficult time. As we grieve and navigate this unimaginable loss, we kindly ask for privacy during this time and will not be providing any additional comments."
WRAL News spoke on Wednesday with Calyssa Sauls, who was once a student of Welsh.
“I’ve seen so many comments saying she’s literally the sweetest, she had a great soul, and that is very much true,” Sauls said
Sauls told WRAL News that Welsh was one of the most adored teachers in the upper school at Ravenscroft School, a private school in Raleigh.
Welsh was a career educator, teaching science for more than 30 years. She taught at Leesville Road High School before Ravenscroft.
"Her loss is deeply felt by all of us who had the privilege of working with her and learning in her classroom,” Ravenscroft said in a statement.
Welsh died after a man broke into her home Saturday and assaulted her, according to Raleigh police. Ryan Camacho, 36, is charged with the murder of Welsh. He is due in court again on Jan. 26.
Gov. Josh Stein called Welsh's death "absolutely heartbreaking," noting that he has friends whose children were Welsh's students.
"She was a remarkable teacher," Stein said. "She shouldn't be dead. She should be alive. She should be in school teaching today."
From numerous interviews with members of the Ravenscroft community and beyond, it is clear that Welsh cared deeply about her students beyond their academics.
One parent told WRAL News that when her daughter missed school for almost two weeks because she was sick, Welsh made a point of keeping the girl’s health as their primary focus, not her studies.
“Ms. Welsh could see how stressed out my daughter was about catching up, but she told her that she didn’t need to worry about assignments or tests and quizzes,” said Jennifer Moran, the girl’s mom. “I didn’t expect that since it was an AP class, but she really was a special teacher.”
Since Welsh’s death, a travel group called the Travel Sisters Network has posted about Welsh, who they describe as a “dear friend and Travel Sister.”
One member of the group described her time spent with Welsh on New Year’s Eve:
“I am so thankful that I got to spend Wednesday evening with her and celebrate the new year. We made plans to talk this week and made a commitment to spend more time together. We had so many wonderful memories in the short time we got to know each other, and I will treasure them. She was there for me when my dad was dying, she hugged me tight in the airport when I found out he was gone. What I wouldn’t give for one more hug… one more laugh over our inside jokes.”Travel Sisters Network
