Spirit passed away on Tuesday at the age of 32, just 10 days after suffering a severe brain injury following a car accident.
The Shawnee High School community is mourning the loss of Nicole Spirit, a biology teacher who passed away on Tuesday, Dec. 27.
Spirit died 10 days after suffering a severe brain injury in a car accident on Dec. 17, according to a GoFundMe fundraiser page started to help Spirit’s family pay for funeral costs and other expenses.
Spirit taught biology and advanced biology at Shawnee. She was also the advisor for the Animal Welfare Club and Biology Club. Spirit was in the middle of completing her master’s degree in biology at Rutgers and spent most her free time raising animals on her farm.
“The Shawnee family is deeply saddened by this great loss as Mrs. Spirit, a passionate educator, was an inspiration to students and staff alike,” Lenape Regional High School District officials said in a statement. “We extend our deepest sympathies to her family and friends.”
Visitation will be held on Friday, Dec. 30, from 9 a.m. to noon, at at LeRoy P. Wooster Funeral Home & Crematory at 441 White Horse Pike, in Atco. A memorial service will follow. Cremation will be held privately with the family.
In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations to be made in Nicole’s name to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society at www.lls.org or the Animal Welfare Association at www.awanj.org.
Counselors will be available to students and staff when Shawnee re-opens for classes on Jan. 3.
