The Monday evening deaths of Adam Miller 14, and Mackenzie Miller, 17, brother and sister, have left Salem R-80 students and staff and the community in shock and dismay.
"It doesn't seem possible that it's real, " said Salem High School senior Tyler Wofford. "You hear about this happening in other schools, but you don't think about it happening here."
Said junior high student Megan Fowler: "When I first heard about it, I kept thinking that this can't be real."
Adam and Mackenzie were killed in a three-vehicle crash Monday afternoon east of Salem, according to a report from the State Highway Patrol. The accident will forever change the lives of parents, classmates and teachers.
"I keep having these bad nightmares," said SHS senior Bailey Barnes, who lives nearby and saw the accident scene shortly after the crash occurred.
John Smith, high school principal, and Doug Cuneio, junior high principal, believe students and the Dent County community will remain strong and cope with such terrible news.
"These are difficult situations, but I believe Salem R-80 is like a family and we, along with the community, will work together and pull through," Smith said.
The normally noisy hallways were silent Tuesday, but students later in the week starting to become more themselves, according to several students.
Smith and Cuneio say students, staff and others have dealt with the situation in many ways.
The school has brought in rural school counselors to help R-80 counselors provide support service. There have been offers of help from many people in the community and local churches.
"We all need to be strong for each other, and I think we will," Wofford said.
Students and teachers are also finding it helpful to talk with each other, remembering good times and sharing laughs and tears.
"Talking about it with our friends is real good, it helps you grow and stay strong," said Aaron Hodges, an eighth grade student. He was Adam Miller's good friend, a cousin and a teammate on the eighth grade football team.
"There was one time when Adam, Eric Wood and I went on an all-day fishing trip," Hodges said. "We got to see a lot of cool stuff and caught 28 bass. We had a lot of fun and talked about it for a long time."
This past summer Adam Miller and Hodges were on a vacation to Branson, Silver Dollar City and White Water.
"Those were some good times, and we got to go together," Hodges said.
Fun times also included swimming pool parties and hanging out for Mackenzie Miller, Barnes and Katy Vaughn.
"We had a lot of fun in our pool," Barnes said. "We got in and swam a lot, but we didn't want to get our hair wet."
Barnes said the three also liked to "borrow" each other's clothes.
"I spent most of the day Monday talking and crying with Katy about it," Barnes said. "I kept thinking that she would be coming back anytime."
The eighth grade class held a meeting Monday to talk about the accident and how to deal with the news.
"It's not going to be easy," Cuneio said. "But we feel it's important to let the kids talk with the counselors and with each other."
Students in both buildings have been expressing their thoughts on posters in school hallways. There have been lines forming Tuesday and Wednesday. Two signs have been filled and more started.
"It's not been easy because people grieve in many different ways," Smith said. "It helps students talk with each other and to share their memories and stories."
That's what Sonic Restaurant employees have been doing, too. A large sign was painted on the front window at the restaurant and all carhop tips Wednesday and today (Thursday) will be going to the Miller family.
Kala Trolinger and Tarah Dotson remember the "chicken walk" Mackenzie would do when coming back from delivering an order.
"She would crouch down real low, flap her arms back and forth and walk like a chicken when coming back," Trolinger said. "She was real funny in whatever she did."
I'll always remember what a cutup she was," said Jered Jackson, youth pastor at New Harmony Baptist Church. "She always had such a grin.
"One of the things that I'll always remember about Mackenzie is that big smile of hers. That smile could change anyone's day. I don't think she ever met a stranger."
Adam was a student at Salem Junior High and was involved in athletics. This past football season was his first year in the sport. He was a starter in the defensive backfield, said his coach, Clay Moody.
"He was athletic and, because he was tall, he gave us some good coverage in the defensive backfield," Moody said. "He had a lot of potential."
Matt Parker, Oak Grove Baptist Church youth pastor, said Adam Wood was saved at the last Judgment House performance.
"He was always smiling with his friends and having a good time," Parker said. "He had a great personality."
Mackenzie was a senior at Salem High School and in the health academy in the Rolla Technical Center, according to Smith, SHS principal.
Mackenzie and Adam's parents are Shelly Kerr and Brian Miller.
Visitation for the two will be 3 p.m.-8 p.m. Friday at New Harmony Church. Funeral service will be 11 a.m. Saturday at New Harmony Church.
The crash occurred at 3:22 p.m. on Hwy. 32, three miles east of Salem. Mackenzie Miller was driving a 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt eastbound and struck the rear of an eastbound 1997 Toyota Corolla driven by Bailey M. Stephens, 16, Salem. Miller's vehicle then crossed the centerline and was struck by a westbound 1999 Chevrolet Lumina driven by Donna F. Nunley, 35, Bunker.
Mackenzie Miller and Adam Miller were pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics. Also killed was the Millers' long-time pet, a dog named Lucy.
Nunley suffered moderate injuries and an occupant in her vehicle, Fredrick S. Nunley, 34, Bunker, suffered minor injuries, and was taken by ambulance to Salem Memorial District Hospital. Another passenger in the Nunley vehicle, Shayna M. Nunley, 14, Bunker, suffered serious injuries and was flown by Air Evac to St. Louis Children's Hospital.
All drivers and passengers were wearing seatbelts.
