This is just so sad to hear.
Amid all the excitement for Taylor Swift‘s wedding to Travis Kelce, there was a tragedy. Kirk Schwabe, affectionately known by Tay and Swifties as Mr. Schwabe, sadly passed away on Friday. In case you’re not familiar, he was Taylor’s criminal justice teacher back at Henderson High School back in the early 2000s when she was just a teen before her big break. After she garnered some fame, the retired police officer spent some time as her bodyguard.
Sadly, Mr. Schwabe had been battling cancer, according to updates from his daughter Sarah Gordon. On Thursday, she revealed her dad was put in hospice care after his condition worsened:
“Over the past several weeks, his health has declined rapidly and he has now been moved to hospice care. If you know my dad, you know he has poured his heart into everything he’s done. He has always loved teaching. He loves his students.”
Related: Travis Couldn’t Fight Back Tears While Exchanging Vows With Taylor
Heartbreakingly, he passed away while Taylor was getting married.
Just days before his death, on July 2, he did an interview with The Telegraph and totally gave his approval for Travis — what a special moment! He said at the time:
“I do trust Taylor’s judgment. She knows what’s best.”
He looked back at his relationship with the pop star, gushing:
“I told her, you’re a superstar. This is not fun and games no more. You are it. Everything keeps going up and up and up, and the sky’s the limit for you.”
He also admitted it was a total “panic” for him to watch her get more and more famous, especially back when he was her bodyguard:
“If anything happens, I’m the guy. We got four or five hundred people in here, and I got some extra security guards, but I don’t know a lot of these guys who got hired, I don’t know what their qualifications are.”
His wife, Jane, even gushed of the pair’s relationship:
“He treated her like he did his daughters.”
Aww…
It’s clear Taylor saw a father figure in Kirk, too! During her role in the movie Valentine’s Day, her teacher was even named Mr. Schwabe as a reference to him.
We’re sending so much love to Taylor and the rest of Mr. Schwabe’s loved ones. May he rest in peace.
[Image via MEGA/WENN]