The faculty and staff at Cutler Bay Middle School are mourning the loss of one of their own after Michelle Vargas died while trying to save her 10-year-old son with autism from drowning this past weekend.
Vargas had taken her son Michael to visit his grandparents over the long weekend in El Salvador, and on one of the days — which happened to be her 49th birthday — they decided to go to the beach.
Vargas and her son got caught in a rip current, and while Vargas was able to save Michael, she ended up drowning, according to a GoFundMe page set up by her family and friends.
“She gave her life for her son," said Cutler Bay Middle School Principal Ignacio Rodriguez. "He was swimming out, she saw him, jumped into action as a parent would. He made it back to shore and unfortunately she did not."
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Alicia Giraud, a friend and colleague of Vargas, said she dedicated her life to taking care of children with special needs at their school, but her son was her world.
“We need to bring her back home," Giraud said. "It is costing an excess of $15,000. We don’t have that much money yet. Also her son is severely autistic and she was his sole caregiver. We need to funds to take care of him."
Giraud created a GoFundMe page to raise money for funeral expenses and to support Vargas's son.
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"Exceptional is a very small word to describe what Michelle Vargas was," Giraud said.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Jose L. Dotres released a statement saying, "We are devastated to learn about the tragic loss of a beloved and respected teacher who has impacted the lives of Cutler Bay Middle School students for nearly a decade."
