“I always am,” he said.
Those were the last words they spoke.
A little time later, around 4:15 p.m. Sunday, Lehigh’s motorcycle and a car driven by Allen Taylor collided at the intersection of Manchester Road and Cambridge Drive, according to Middletown police. Taylor, the only person in his car, wasn’t hurt, but Lehigh suffered serious injuries’.
Lehigh was traveling west on Manchester and Taylor was traveling south on Cambridge, according to Middletown police. Police don’t believe impairment or speed caused the accident that remains under investigation.
The 60-year-old was transported to Atrium Medical Center, then flown to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton where he was pronounced dead Tuesday morning, his daughter said.
“Devastated,” said Bowling, one of his three daughters. “He was a really good man, a really good father.”
Lehigh, of Richmond, Ky., was living with his daughter in Middletown until his wife, Loretta “Jo,” completed a work assignment back home. They had planned to move to Middletown, Bowling said.
Lehigh was talking to his wife on his headset when the crash occurred, his daughter said. Then the phone went dead.
Bowling tracked her dad’s cell phone to Atrium Medical Center. While driving to the hospital, she passed the crash scene and was told by Middletown police officers her father was going to be flown to MVH.
She drove to Miami Valley and sat with her father until he died. Jo Lehigh arrived at the hospital Sunday night, Bowling said.
“This is a terrible tragedy that has shifted our whole world,” Bowling wrote to family and friends. “We had some great memories recently as he was here visiting us. I’m so glad we had that time. This man was the strongest, toughest, and most loving man I’ve ever known. He was our rock.”
Besides his wife, he’s survived by three daughters, Wendy Wheeler, Casey Taylor and Bowling.
Bowling said her father will be cremated and the family will hold a private celebration of life service. Donald Jordan Funeral Home is handling the arraignments.
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