Retired teacher killed by driver 'always inspiring'

Doris Post was killed by drink-driver Mandeep Singh as she pushed her bike over a pedestrian crossing in Walsall, in 2021

Tributes have been paid to an "inspiring" and "passionate" retired teacher who was killed by a drink-driver while pushing her bike across a pedestrian crossing.

Doris Post was hit by a car driven by Mandeep Singh, 45, on Lower Rushall Street, in Walsall, on the morning of 13 July 2021.

Miss Post had been a language teacher at Queen Mary's High School in the town for 27 years, before retiring in 2019.

Former students and colleagues spoke of her ever-present smile, intelligence and generosity, as well as her belief in the innate goodness of people.

Nathalie Benton, a colleague at Queen Mary's, said: "Doris was always interested in what other people were doing but always very humble and discreet about her own achievements."

Known to generations of girls as Frau Post, Miss Post taught German, Spanish, and Ancient Greek at Queen Mary's.

'Tragic unfair loss'

Helene Lovell, the leader of modern foreign languages at the school, said: "I had the privilege to work with Miss Post for over 20 years, before she decided to retire to enjoy what she loved the most: studying, spending time with friends, and travelling.

"Doris was certainly a dedicated teacher and an amazing linguist, but above all she was an extremely kind, supportive, and generous friend.

"I miss her, her zest for life and her beaming smile very dearly.”

Debbie Madeley, who was a student and then a maths teacher at the school, said Miss Post always had a smile on her face.

"She just seemed delighted to see you," she said.

"I'm saddened once again at the tragic and unfair loss. I hope she realised how loved she was."

A keen classical scholar, Miss Post graduated with a PhD from the Open University in 2018 and co-founded an academic journal called the Syllogos, which holds an annual essay competition in her memory.

'Talented but humble'

Colleague Naomi Beer said Miss Post cared deeply about the environment and her garden was "a beautiful, quiet haven in the middle of busy Walsall".

Ms Beer also said her dear friend was "the most generous person I have ever known" and that "she always looked for the good in everyone".

"Although she was extremely intelligent and intellectual, she never emphasised it or made you feel inferior in any way," she said.

"She made everyone that she met feel valued."

Many students have paid tribute to Miss Post's constant smile and positivity

Estela Crutchley, a foreign language assistant at the school from 1995 to 2012, said: "Doris was a wonderful human being. She was a very good advisor of life and how to become a better person.

"She always believed in the goodness of people and taught me to expect the best of our students.

"She was my best friend but in her funeral I learned she was many, many people's best friend."

Nigel Tame, the father of one of Miss Post's former pupils, said the late teacher had left a hotpot on his doorstep every morning after he and his wife contracted Covid at the start of the pandemic.

"There are numerous small but significant contributions Doris made to Walsall," Mr Tame said.

"Such as her personal campaign of harassment of the Canal and Rivers Trust to prevent the mowing of a stretch of canal towpath where she discovered a developing patch of rare Southern Marsh Orchids.

"Thanks to that campaign, there is now a vigorous growth of these beautiful and unusual plants."

'Unbelievable character'

Many students remembered Miss Post's positivity, agreeing that they would always see her with a beaming smile - even if faced with a room of teenagers battling through verb declensions or vocabulary tests.

One, Rachel Hughes, said: "She was never anything less than delightful and positive, even in the face of the moodiest of moody teenagers. She was a rare diamond."

Jaipal Kaur said she always cycled into school with a smile on her face.

"Even with a difficult class she was always patient - even when we tested her."

Vicki Saunders said she was "a woman with an unbelievable character, good heart and truly part of out community."

Her "passionate" and "inspiring" teaching inspired many to foster a love of languages, including Leigh Etheridge, who said Miss Post was the reason why she is now a director of languages at a local school.

Ms Etheridge said: "She may not have been a mother herself, but she truly had hundreds and hundreds of girls who looked up to her with adoration and admiration."