BUFFALO, N.Y. — The music community in Buffalo is in mourning. They have lost a beautiful voice and musician much too soon.
2 On Your Side has more on the life of Sara Rogers and her love for music. This young woman died tragically in a bike crash involving a vehicle on Friday.
Steve Shewan, former music teacher and band director at Williamsville East High School says with grief, "We lost an angel. We really did."
That reflective thought from Shewan as he thinks of his former student and the terrible accident on Friday when 29-year-old Sara Rogers was struck and killed by a car while riding her bike on South Park in Buffalo. Police say the female driver suffered a medical emergency. Two of Sara's friends also on bikes, were also struck and suffered serious injuries.
Sara attended Williamsville East High School and Nazareth College in Rochester for her music education degree.
Shewan says she was a polished singer-songwriter.
"She performed in all the musical venues in Buffalo and Rochester. She had a lot of fans. She really had quite a following."
But Rogers, through her YouTube Channel was also a music therapist for kids and others.
Shewan says, "Music therapy - I think she really believed in the power of music as a healing agent. The musical interventions that she created for her students - depended on whatever their needs were. Whether they were emotional or physical or academic. Sara was so creative. She could tailor-make whatever music she wanted to approach that student with and she knew how to tap into whatever the issue was and help that child."
Sara also used that ability to come up with a way to help and heal following the May 14 supermarket shooting attack.
"She took her music therapy and volunteered after the shootings on the East Side. She went right down there and took songs down and offered therapy through music for anyone who wanted any kind of help. She was there and that's how Sara was. Whenever anyone needed anything she just had this way of showing up."
Shewan has been busy answering calls since the news of the accident.
"Former students who were all over the place, calling up. One wrote - 'please tell me it's not true". And I got back to her and she just sobbed."
Sara is survived by her mother, sister, life partner, and of course many, many friends.
Shewan says while funeral arrangements are not complete, he expects appropriately a celebration of life with many of her classmates coming home for a service and plenty of musical performances as a tribute from her musician friends.