Liberty University community mourns loss

Tragedy struck the Lynchburg and Liberty Christian Academy (LCA) community Jan. 6, after LCA seniors Stacia Anderson, 17, and Breanna Boyd, 17, were killed in a single car accident.

Stacia Anderson

The four-door Honda Civic, operated by Anderson, swerved to the right side of Mayflower Drive, then swerved to the left and hit a concrete pole at a private business. Excessive speed was to blame, according to a Central Virginia Crimestoppers news release. Both girls were pronounced dead at the scene.

Both Anderson and Boyd had close ties with the Lynchburg community. Anderson’s father, Keith, currently serves as the Dean of Students at Liberty University as well as Chief Conduct Officer.

Breanna Boyd

Anderson and Boyd were considered best friends and “were always in the hallways together and outside of school,” LCA campus pastor Louis Preston Jr. said.

On Thursday, Jan. 12, LCA seniors gathered in the lobby of the school during their lunch period to write messages on orange and purple balloons, Anderson and Boyd’s favorite colors, to set free into the sky in honor of them.

A memorial service was also held later that night at Thomas Road Baptist Church. The service was an opportunity for friends and family to gather for a time of mourning and to share memories of the two girls, according to a News & Advance article. LCA superintendent John Patterson, friend of the girls and an LCA teacher, spoke at the service.

Preston remembers Anderson and Boyd’s independent nature, especially when both girls would slightly bend the LCA uniform policy.

“Stacia and Breanna would always find ways to dress up,” Preston said in an interview with the News & Advance. “Stacia had these orange boots and would wear them a lot.”

The concrete pole where the accident occurred evolved into a memorial service. Flowers of different colors and candles surround the crash site along with a pink poster board with goodbye messages.

“Your laughs and smiles will be truly missed. Fly high,” wrote one student on the poster board.

Preston describes the best friends that died together that Friday night in three words: “They were loved.”