St. Mary’s County is mourning the loss of Alex Jaffurs, a long time teacher and school administrator, who died July 18.
A news release from St. Mary’s County Public Schools on July 20 said the 55-year-old died from a terminal illness. Jaffurs leaves behind a wife, Christine, a son, Nicholas, and a daughter, Gina.
“While many of us know Alex for his incredible work as a bold, brilliant leader, Alex was first and foremost a devoted husband …. and an incredibly proud father,” the release said. “His love for his family was evident in every facet of his life, and to know Alex was also to know of all of their accomplishments.”
Jaffurs taught mathematics at Patuxent High School and was a Panthers’ football coach for about a decade before he moved to the St. Mary's public school system. He was most recently the assistant superintendent of supporting services.
“Alex made an impact on a lot of people in a lot of ways,” said Patuxent High School varsity football coach Steve Crounse, whose son Reece played for Jaffurs. “He was a motivator, he inspired excellence in his students [and] he inspired excellence in teachers and coaches. He brought tons of energy everyday to every situation. He made you believe in yourself when you were around him. He wasn’t just a football coach.”
Jaffurs, who lived in Leonardtown, later taught math at Leonardtown High School before he was appointed as the St. Mary's school system's director of assessment and accountability.
“We lost a good one last week,” said Commissioner Eric Colvin (R), who had Jaffurs as his calculus teacher at Leonardtown High. “He was one of the teachers that everyone remembers. He cared about his students. He cared about his co-workers. He had an infectious personality and was loved by many. The stories from high school will be saved to share with my classmates, but getting to see him every year at the school graduations has been wonderful and I will miss him.
Colvin added that during the commissioners' annual budget process, Jaffurs' sense of humor would show when he would quip, “Who taught Colvin his math?"
“I can tell you right now that Alex Jaffurs was an amazing person, passionate about teaching math to students,” St. Mary's school board member Cathy Allen said in a telephone interview. “He was quick with a laugh and cared deeply about not only students but all of the work he did to make the school system better.”
The school system's release provided resources for St. Mary’s County students, staff and administrators on dealing with grief.
“I am in complete shock,” Aim Burger, who taught with Jaffurs at Patuxent High, wrote in a social media post. “Alex you were one of a kind. May you rest in peace. Prayers to your family.”
In another post, Jonathan Martin wrote that Jaffurs “was literally everyone's favorite teacher. His teachings inspired many of my peers to pursue higher education in math, several of which now teach it.”
Funeral visitation for Jaffurs was planned for 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, July 25, at Brinsfield Funeral Home in Leonardtown.
A private internment was planned for July 26 at St. Aloysius Gonzaga Catholic Church in Leonardtown.
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