['My heart sank when I heard about my favorite teacher from elementary school passing away.', "Ohhhh, that's so sad. I remember (long ago) when that happened to me. Did he/she live a good long life?", "I hope so. I heard it was cancer. He was always such a happy man. It's a shame."]
Yeah, that is a shame. I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. I know how important a great teacher can be your life.
My heart sank when I heard my favorite teacher from elementary school passed away.