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Popular retired teacher, known as a 'gentle giant,' dies in crash

Teenage daughter of Edgewood football coach also involved in wreck.

Thomas Highley

Butler County Sheriff's Department deputies Mike Steele and Terry McClanahan inspect the two cars involved in a fatal accident Tuesday, June 2, 2009 at the intersection of Cotton Run Road and Oxford-Middletown Road in Wayne Twp.

Daggy, Nick Butler County Sheriff's Department deputies Mike Steele and Terry McClanahan inspect the two cars involved in a fatal accident Tuesday, June 2, 2009 at the intersection of Cotton Run Road and Oxford-Middletown Road in Wayne Twp.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Location of two-car crash that claimed the life of Thomas Highley.

ENLARGE PHOTO

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By Lauren Pack, Richard Wilson and Peggy McCracken
Staff Writers Updated 11:12 AM Wednesday, June 3, 2009

WAYNE TWP. — Thomas Highley — a popular retired Edgewood schoolteacher known for his funny stories, jokes and “lunch song” — died Tuesday, June 2, in a two-car crash just outside Jacksonburg.

Family, friends and former students are mourning the loss of the 58-year-old former Edgewood Teachers Association president whom some referred to as a “gentle giant.”

Highley, of West Elkton Road, was pronounced dead shortly after 7 a.m. at the scene of the crash at Cotton Run and Oxford-Middletown roads, according to the Butler County Sheriff’s Office.

Highley was on his way to be with a friend who was having surgery at Atrium Medical Center in Middletown, said Debbie Lacey, a coroner’s investigator.

Leeann Channell, the 17-year-old daughter of Edgewood High School athletic director and football coach Steve Channell, was driving the car that struck Highley’s 2008 Hyundai Accent, police said.

The Edgewood High School junior, who was en route to class, was not injured , authorities said.

The accident remains under investigation and no charges have been filed as of yet, according to sheriff’s officials.

School district officials said the loss has devastated their tight-knit community. “He was a kid-caring, fantastic teacher and person,” district spokesman John Thomas said of Highley, who retired from Edgewood in 2005.

“Our prayers and thoughts are going out to both families in this unfortunate time.”

The Channell family also issued a statement Tuesday afternoon.

“Our hearts and prayers are extended to (his wife) Reda Highley and the entire Highley family,” the statement said. “Tom Highley was a well-respected educator ... We mourn Tom Highley’s loss along with the rest of the Edgewood family.”

A ‘big guy’ with ‘a big heart’

Highley was described by those who knew him as “a big motorcycle-riding guy with a big heart.”

He loved kids and they loved him.

“Here was this big, intimidating guy, with amazing compassion. He was always genuine, pure, someone who loved Christ,” said Terry Rolen, pastor of Breiel Boulevard First Church of God in Middletown where Highley attended and served on the elder board.

“He worked in the nursery for years and the kids loved him.”

Highley, a former Edgewood City Schools teacher, was killed Tuesday, June 2, when his car was struck by another car at the intersection of Cotton Run and Oxford-Middletown roads.

Highley’s 2008 Hyundai Accent traveled off the right side of the road, struck a concrete post, and flipped onto its top, deputies said. The 58-year-old Wayne Twp. man was pronounced dead the scene.

Crash shocks district, community

The tragic accident rocked the Edgewood school community as news spread that the other driver involved was Leeann Channell, the 17-year-old daughter of Edgewood High School athletic director and football coach Steve Channell.

The Butler County Sheriff’s Office received three 911 calls at about 7:09 a.m. reporting the crash.

Laura Channell, Leeann’s mother, can be heard on the 911 tapes telling dispatchers that her daughter has had an accident and she is on her way to the scene.

“Oh, my God,” Laura Channel said to dispatchers as others got to Highley’s car to check on his condition. “They don’t feel a pulse ma’am.”

A female sobbing in the background can be heard saying, “I didn’t stop all the way. I didn’t see him coming ... It’s my fault.” Officials did not confirm Tuesday whether the voice belonged to Leeann Channell.

According to deputies, the Edgewood High School junior was not injured in the crash and it remains unclear whether she may face any charges.

District spokesman John Thomas said members of the district’s crisis management teams were at Edgewood’s high school and middle school on Tuesday.

The Channell family issued a statement Tuesday afternoon saying in part, “We know Tom was very loyal to his faith, his family, the community and the school district. Our community has so many caring and supportive people, and his loss affects us all. This is a true testament to the type of man Tom was.”

A woman who answered the phone Tuesday at the Highley residence politely declined comment.

A man of influence

Highley retired in 2005 from Edgewood schools, where he was a vocational educational teacher and former president of the Edgewood Teachers Association. His wife, Reda, also retired in 2005 from Edgewood, where she was a home economics teacher.

There was an outpouring of condolences on the Journal’s Web site from many former students who remembered interacting with Highley in the classroom, on stage crew and even in driver’s education. One reader said the former shop teacher “could make even the biggest girly girl love a scroll saw!”

Many students recalled his funny stories, jokes and songs. But mostly they reflected on the lessons he taught them about life.

“Tom was one of the most influential people in my life,” Mike Singhoffer wrote. “As one of his students through high school, he became a lifetime friend and mentor, always there to provide me with his advice and encouragement.”

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