The Nickajack Elementary School community will honor a longtime Cobb teacher who died suddenly over the weekend.
Jennifer Theiss Paller, a second-grade teacher at Nickajack Elementary School, passed away March 30, Principal Laura Meyer said Sunday on the Nickajack PTA Facebook page.
A funeral service for Paller, 42, is set for 11 a.m. Thursday, April 4 at Northside United Methodist Church in Atlanta, according to an obituary notice posted by H.M. Patterson & Son-Arlington Chapel. Additional details on Paller's cause of death were not disclosed.
Meyer said the school will be “well-represented” at Paller’s funeral. Meyer, who is in her first year at Nickajack, said the teacher touched hundreds of students during her 17 years at the school.
To honor the longtime educator, Meyer said the PTA plans to plant a cherry tree on school grounds and install a stone memorializing Paller.
During a PTA-sponsored event planned for Friday, April 12 at the school, a slideshow of pictures featuring Paller will be on display and rocks will be available for people to decorate to pay tribute to the educator. Those rocks will be placed around the garden near the tree, Meyer said.
“She was one of those people that just helped, volunteered and just spread joy and goodness everywhere she went,” Meyer said.
Kim Wacker, a Tampa, Fla., resident, said she met Paller when they attended elementary school, but they’ve been friends for 25 years. She said the news of Paller’s death came as a shock.
“I’m still having a hard time with the past tense,” she said when she talked about her friend.
Wacker said Paller’s desire to become a teacher stems from her mother’s career as an educator. They both attended the University of Alabama.
“She was just someone that lit up a room,” Wacker said. “Her love for life was contagious and everyone wanted to be around her.”
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A GoFundMe account has been created to help Paller's family pay for funeral expenses, and can be accessed here. The campaign organized by Julia Ewg seeks to raise $20,000.
Paller is survived by her husband, Matthew Paller, and their two children, Wyatt and Dylan Paller.
Nickajack’s principal said the school’s counselor is on hand to “support any student who may need our support.”
She also said she and the counselor will meet directly with students when the system returns from spring break on Monday, April 8.
“We will be watching closely the emotions of all the students and will notify any parent directly should we notice any sort of emotional impact,” Meyer said in her statement. “The Nickajack community has always been known for being supportive of one another so I appreciate your continued support and empathy during this difficult time.”
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The Atlanta Journal Constitution has reached out to Meyer and the Cobb County School District to see if there are plans to honor the educator’s legacy.
According to her LinkedIn page, Paller had taught in Cobb County schools since January 1999. She graduated from the University of Alabama in 1998 and obtained a master's in education from Georgia State University in 2001.
Wacker said her friend will be remembered for her selfless attitude, her “positive energy” and influence on her students and an incredible mother, wife and role model.
“I can’t think of anyone better to be in the teaching and educating profession than her,” Wacker added.
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