SAN ANTONIO – Texas High School Coaches Association officials are calling the shooting of a Jasper ISD coach who was in San Antonio for their conference “tragic and senseless.”
Ayden Burt, 28, taught English at the district’s middle and high schools and was a cheer sponsor and coach.
She was in San Antonio for the Texas High School Coaches Association Coaching School and Conference and attended an event sponsored by the Hispanic TXHSFB Coaches Association at Smoke Skybar on Monday night when she was shot.
The elevated patio bar is located in the 500 block of East Crockett Street, not far from East Houston Street and Interstate 37.
Police said she was sitting on the patio just after midnight with her back to the highway when she was hit by a bullet fired from the vicinity of Interstate 37.
Joe Martin, the executive director of THSCA said Burt was “a wonderful person and a great coach.”
He called the shooting “truly unimaginable.”
The THSCA conference has an attendance of more than 16,000 people. It has been held in San Antonio for eight of the last 10 years and is scheduled to return to the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center for four of the next six years.
“San Antonio has always been a great host and a safe place for our coaches and it’s why we love coming there. We know the authorities will work tirelessly to find the perpetrators and we are hopeful they will be brought to justice,” Martin said.
Read the full statement from Martin below:
“We are absolutely heartbroken about the tragic and senseless death of Ayden Burt early Tuesday morning. We know first-hand that she was a wonderful person and a great coach who was passionate about the work she was doing to help the young people in East Texas excel. Our annual convention is all about celebrating the coaching profession and bringing people together. Ayden was having fun at an offsite networking event with her fellow coaches and what happened is truly unimaginable. To be laughing and sharing stories with her colleagues one moment and fighting for her life the next due to a mindless and heinous act is difficult to comprehend. San Antonio has always been a great host and a safe place for our coaches and it’s why we love coming there. We know the authorities will work tirelessly to find the perpetrators and we are hopeful they will be brought to justice. Meanwhile, our community of coaches is devastated and a loving family is grieving. Our hearts and prayers go out to her family, friends and the Jasper community. On behalf of the entire Texas High School Coaches Association, we will be making a benevolence fund donation to her family to provide additional support during this incredibly difficult time.”
SAPD released the following statement about the shooting:
“Monday’s fatal shooting was a random isolated incident and does not reflect our community. Investigators continue to search for a suspect in Monday’s murder. The investigation is active and ongoing.”