Colonial Forge High School's first-ever forensics coach was killed in a car accident Sunday in Egypt.
Valli Hamed, 60, who taught English, had talked about the trip to Egypt all year because her grown children were going with her, a colleague said. She and her husband are natives of Egypt and traveled there annually to visit relatives.
"She was very happy about returning to Egypt with her immediate family," said Betty Krapfl, who retired this year as the Stafford County school's English department chair. "This is the one summer when they were all going to be together."
Details about the crash were unavailable.
Hamed had planned to attend two graduations and a family reunion in Egypt, Colonial Forge Principal Lisa Martin said.
Hamed worked at Colonial Forge since 2000 and formed the forensics team shortly after that.
Forensics team students placed in local and state speech and debate competitions under Hamed's leadership.
Colleagues described Hamed as a warm and funny person who had her students' respect.
"She taught them a lot more than English, she really did," Krapfl said. "She had a personal interest in them as well as an educational one."
She always kept an eye out for proper manners, Krapfl said. Whenever students ignored the "please knock" sign on a planning room door, Hamed had them turn around and try again.
"She had a quick wit," Krapfl said. "She could always retort back to the kids, especially young boys who misbehaved."
English teacher Michael Snead said she worked well with students, including those who often kept to themselves.
"She was very warm," he said. "She laughed a lot, told a lot of stories--I think she was very approachable."
Martin called Hamed's death "a huge loss to our community."
"She was a rare and extraordinary teacher, and she will be sorely missed both personally and professionally," she said.
Jeff Branscome: 540/374-5402
Email: jbranscome@freelancestar.com