Irma Garcia, an elementary school teacher in the United States, was killed in a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, days before her husband passed away.

Tuesday (Wednesday NZT) in her Texas classroom, Irma Garcia was gunned down, along with her co-teacher and 19 students. Two days later, according to family members, her heartbroken husband died of a heart attack.

The New York Times reported that Joe Garcia, 50, delivered flowers to his wife's memorial on Thursday morning (local time). After going home, he "pretty much just fell over" and died of a heart attack, according to his nephew, John Martinez.

This couple has been married for twenty-four years and has four children. Cristian is serving in the Marine Corps, while Jose attended Texas State University. Their oldest daughter, Lyliana, is a sophomore in high school, while her younger sister is in the seventh grade.

Martinez, the Garcias' nephew, told The Detroit Free Press that the family found it difficult to comprehend that as Garcia's son trained for combat, his mother was shot and killed.

"Such incidents have no place in schools," he told the publication. "It's improper. It's not acceptable."

The Archdiocese of San Antonio and Rushing-Estes-Knowles Mortuary informed The Associated Press of Joe Garcia's passing. Thursday, the AP could not contact members of the Garcia family independently.

According to the archdiocese, Archbishop Gustavo Garca-Siller will celebrate Mass at Sacred Heart Church in Uvalde on Thursday evening for the Garcia family and the broader community.

According to a GoFundMe page created by Garcia's cousin Debra Garcia Austin, Joe passed away on Thursday "due to a medical emergency." His family has linked his death to his extreme grief.

Please keep our family in your thoughts and prayers; the update on the fundraiser reads. "I have no doubt that Joe died of a broken heart, and that losing the love of his life after more than three decades was too much for him to bear."

In a tweet, Garcia's nephew John Martinez also confirmed his passing. "Joe Garcia has died from grief, and I am truly at a loss for words to describe how we all feel," he wrote.

The motive for the Texas school massacre — the nation's deadliest school shooting since Newtown, Connecticut, nearly a decade ago – is still being investigated, with investigators stating that the 18-year-old shooter had no known criminal or mental health background.

Police say that the alleged shooter, Salvador Ramos, was inside a classroom at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde for more than an hour before being killed in a gunfight.

The rampage has shaken a nation already wracked by gun violence. The death toll rises in Uvalde, a predominantly Latino city of roughly 16,000 people located 120 kilometers from the Mexican border.

Irma's 23rd year of teaching was supposed to conclude on Thursday at Robb Elementary School. She has previously been chosen as the school's teacher of the year and was a 2019 recipient of Trinity University's Trinity Prize for Excellence in Education.

Irma Garcia, age 48, said in an online letter to her children at Robb Elementary that the Garcias enjoyed barbecuing. Irma enjoyed listening to music and enjoying country cruises to Concan, a hamlet on the Frio River located around 40 kilometers north of Uvalde.

"When I began teaching, Mrs. Irma Garcia was my mentor," Irma's colleague Allison McCullough stated when Irma was selected teacher of the year. The quantity of information and patience she showed me changed my life.

Irma had co-taught for five years with Eva Mireles, who was also murdered.

"Welcome to grade four! We have an incredible year ahead!" Last year, Mireles issued an online letter to their incoming kids.