Richard (Rick) Priest - Submitted for the USGenWeb by Richard P. Sevier 4/25/2012 USGenWeb NOTICE: All documents placed in the USGenWeb remain the property of the contributors, who retain publication rights in accordance with US Copyright Laws and Regulations. In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, these documents may be used by anyone for their personal research. They may be used by non-commercial entities, when written permission is obtained from the contributor, so long as all notices and submitter information are included. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit. Any other use, including copying files to other sites, requires permission from the contributors PRIOR to uploading to the other sites. ************************************************************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. ************************************************************************************************ Richard (Rick) Priest - Madison Parish, Louisiana From Tallulah Madison Journal, January 6, 1983 Two youths killed in New Year's crash Two youths were killed New Year's morning and one escaped serious injury when their car struck a bridge abutment and was torn in half, throwing all into Roundaway Bayou. Richard (Rick) Priest, 20, and Dennis R. (Bob) Carroll, 19, were both killed in the one-car accident, while Carol Priest, 19, suffered minor injuries and swam to safety. The accident occurred about 2:18 a.m. when Priest's small foreign car, traveling north on old Highway 65 south of Tallulah, apparently slid sideways and struck the Inglewood Bridge. Dr. T. A. Neumann, Madison Parish coroner, said Priest was killed on impact, and that Carroll apparently drowned after the car plunged into the bayou. Carol Priest, sister of the driver, was thrown free of the vehicle and into the bayou, where she dove several times in search of her brother and the Carroll youth. Unable to locate them, she swam to the bank and made her way to the home of A. L. Sevier Jr., just north of the bridge, where she called her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Priest. The police and Tallulah Fire Department Emergency Unit were notified, and began sear-ching for the youths about 3 a.m. Several volunteers aided parents and emergency unit personnel in the search, which was hampered by the darkness and by the heavy brush and debris in the bayou, swollen by recent heavy rains. The Priest youth's body was recovered about 5:30 a.m., and Carroll's about 30 minutes later after dragging the bayou. The car had been pulled from the stream in two separate pieces. The three youths were en route to meet the Priests' parents and others for breakfast at the Tallulah Truck Stop when the accident occurred. They had been together with them at a New Year's party at the Tallulah Country Club, and had left at the same time, but the youths took the old highway north, and apparently lost control upon approaching the narrow bridge, state police said. Services for Richard E. "Rick" Jr., 20, were at 2 p.m. Tallulah United Methodist Church with the Rev. Rupert Coles officiating. Burial was in Memorial Park Cemetery under direction of Crothers Funeral Home. Mr. Priest died Saturday morning one mile south of Tallulah from injuries suffered in an automobile accident. He was a lifelong resident of Tallulah and a graduate of Tallulah Academy. He was a student at Louisiana Tech University and a member of .Tallulah United Methodist Survivors include his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Richard E. Priest of Tallulah; four sisters, Carol Priest, Elizabeth Ashley Priest, Virginia Morris Priest, Sadora Paige Priest, all of Tallulah; maternal grandfather, Castor Causey of Vicksburg, Miss.; and paternal grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. George C. Priest of Pine Bluff, Ark. Pallbearers were Jay Seale, Brad Seale, George King, Michael Martin, Jeff Hicks, Bobby Gipson, Chris Cox and Doug Mitchell. Honorary pallbearers were Bill Arbuckle, James Earl Shivers, Bland Greeson, Keith McDonald, Robert Charles Brown, Scotty Scott, Danny Williams, Steve Gustafson, Todd Ivey, Roy Grady, Clay Sevier, Ken Smith, Randy Collins, Jay Byram, M ike Hoogland, Patrick Young, Bill Bates Regan, Paul Neumann, I. T. Crothers, and Racer Holstead.