Southeast Guilford student rises after losing both parents, heads to App State

Tanner King kept moving forward at Southeast Guilford High School even after grief hit twice in one sophomore year. By the time the Class of 2026 reached graduation season, the Greensboro school had become more than a campus for him. It was the place where teachers, counselors and his older brother Hunter helped him stay anchored long enough to finish strong and look toward Appalachian State University.

King lost his father in mid-June after back pain turned out to be tied to an abdominal aortic aneurysm, a serious condition that can become dangerous fast. His mother, who had COPD and other lung problems, suffered a small heart attack the same day. Her health worsened after she learned she was in stage three heart failure, then stage four, and she died by winter break. King was 15 when both parents were gone, about six months apart.

That is where the school community mattered most. Hunter King, a science teacher at Southeast Guilford, made sure staff knew when Tanner needed to step out of class, collect himself and return when he was ready. Teachers and counselors helped carry the practical load while Tanner kept up with schoolwork and sports. Melissa Rich, a media specialist at Southeast Guilford, described him as one of the most resilient students she had ever seen.

Football also stayed part of the routine that helped him keep going. King’s father had always been at his games, sometimes as a coach and sometimes as a spectator, so staying in the sport gave him a way to hold onto memory as well as momentum. Instead of shutting down, King kept showing up, a steadiness that staff members said defined how he handled loss.

Now King is headed to Appalachian State University in Boone, where he plans to major in kinesiology. App State says the field focuses on the science of human movement and prepares students for careers in health, fitness, athletic performance and graduate study. For King, that next step fits a story that is less about escape than endurance, built on the support he found at Southeast Guilford and the discipline he kept through one of the hardest stretches a student can face. Southeast Guilford’s Class of 2026 graduation ceremony was held June 11 at First Horizon Coliseum in Greensboro, closing one chapter and opening another for a student who learned how much a school can matter when a family is suddenly broken.