Paige Whitelaw, left, and Carlee De Boer were killed in a car crash on Sunday, March 6, 2016.
Image Credit: Facebook
March 07, 2016 - 3:37 PM
VERNON - A small North Okanagan community is grieving the loss of two young women after a car crash early Sunday morning.
The victims have been identified through social media as Carlee De Boer, from Enderby, and her friend, Paige Whitelaw. They were both 21.
The young women were killed when the pickup truck they were passengers in failed to make a curve in the road, hit the shoulder and rolled several times. There were three others in the vehicle at the time. The 21-year-old Armstrong man behind the wheel is under investigation and police say speed and alcohol might have been involved.
On a GoFundMe page created to raise money for a scholarship in her name, De Boer is described as having a contagious smile and great personality.
“Carlee was wellknown in the community where she spent most of her childhood at the river soaking up the rays and water skiing on her beloved Shuswap River. She loved life and everything it had to offer. She played many sports all of which she was a star at and was always a firecracker on the team, a true team player,” states a write-up on the page.
De Boer graduated from A.L. Fortune in Enderby and was most recently attending Okanagan College to become a therapy assistant. She met Whitelaw in college.
Enderby Mayor Greg McCune says the loss is taking a toll on the community.
“It’s a small town. There’s not a person in Enderby not affected by this. It’s a tough one,” he says.
De Boer was very popular in the community and had many friends, McCune says, adding she worked for him over the years.
“She’s a part of this community that will be greatly missed,” he says.
To contact a reporter for this story, email Charlotte Helston at chelston@infonews.ca or call 250-309-5230. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
— This story was updated at 11 a.m. March 8, 2016 to correct the ages of the victims provided by RCMP to 20, from 21, after receiving new information from the coroners service.
News from © iNFOnews, 2016