Family, parents of students and Elmwood Normal School have paid homage to Isaac Levings, a Christchurch teacher whose body was found in Wellington Harbour yesterday.
The 25-year-old's father shared the grief of losing his son, who had been missing since Wednesday night following The 1975 concert at TSB Arena that evening.
"The pain of his loss is so unbearable but so grateful to have all the whanau and friends around us sharing our grief," he wrote.
Tributes from Levings' school community have flooded Facebook, with people describing him as the "best teacher ever", "the coolest human being" and saying he made "such a positive impact on our children and the community".
"Isaac's loss is felt hard in our family," one person wrote.
"Our kids were his kids," another said.
Parents of Levings' students praised his "amazing" and "inspirational" nature, many writing that he was "born" to be a teacher.
Some shared anecdotes of their children's interactions with him, one saying he engaged with their son in a way no teacher had before.
Another post simply referred to Levings as "Mr Legend".
The entrance to Levings' classroom, where he taught year 4 students, has been lined with flowers and cards.
In a statement, Elmwood Normal School acknowledged his death with "deep sadness", saying he was a "treasured colleague, gifted teacher and friend to all".
"The children and school community loved him dearly and he will be greatly missed by all those who had the privilege to know him.
"Our thoughts and condolences are with Isaac's family, friends and loved ones at this very sad time," the school wrote.
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