Melbourne teacher, estranged husband dead in murder-suicide

ROCKLEDGE, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Many are mourning the death of a popular math teacher at Rockledge High School. Investigators are calling it a murder-suicide.  Melbourne Police say Sandra Cook, 54, and her estranged husband, Ricky Wayne Cook, 60, were found dead in a Chapparal Drive home on Monday morning. Investigators say no one else is believed to be involved in the deaths.

According to the Brevard County School District, Cook taught math and served as the gifted coordinator at the high school. Student Raymond Bryant says the news was devastating. "At first, my buddy told me what happened, and I'm like, 'No way you're joking!' So I went to the classroom and everyone was crying." The school principal says Cook was a devoted teacher who inspired many. "It kind of hit me hard as well, so I started crying and comforting people as well."

Cook was finalist for Brevard's Teacher of the Year. According to Principal Tony Hines, Cook was a long term staff member and had been at Rockledge High since 2013. Hines released a statement saying, "Ms Cook was one of the finest people to have walked the halls of our school and she will truly be missed."  Raymond says, "She was a great teacher, she always cared about her students, she put her students first and made sure they were ok and made it a great environment to learn."

Raymond's mother, Victoria, says she'll be praying for everyone involved. "So as a parent we have to prepare our kids because as life happens a lot of things happen so we just have to be strong and prepare our kids." As investigators continue to look for clues as to what happened, Raymond says it will be tough without his teacher. Raymond says, "She touched a lot of people so its kind of a hard thing." A team of grief counselors will be here in the morning. Administrators are asking parents to call the school if they think their child has been affected by this.