(BAY MINETTE, Ala.) Oct. 28 - A Baldwin County community is mourning the death of Delta Elementary School Principal Leah Ann Overstreet, 52. Her family says she was sick for weeks before being diagnosed with swine flu, five days before she died.
Wednesday, at the foot of the flagpole at Delta Elementary, the flowers, notes and sentimental things left behind said it all.
"When the kids came in the morning, that's the first thing they saw- Mrs. Overstreet," said Linda Ezell, a Delta Elementary teacher and friend of Overstreet. "The last thing they did was give her a hug when they went home in their vehicles and she was just everybody's friend."
A teacher in Baldwin County since 1998, Overstreet became the principal at Delta in 2004.
Overstreet's sister-in-law told LOCAL 15 News the principal died Tuesday from pneumonia. She had been on a ventilator for days.
The family member said Overstreet was diagnosed with the swine flu Friday, even though earlier swine flu tests had come back negative.
Baldwin County Schools Superintendent Faron Hollinger issued a statement Wednesday.
"This is a devastating loss," Hollinger said. "Mrs. Overstreet was passionate about her school, her students, the school system and the community."
