One of the three North Carolina sisters killed in a horror car crash this week recently welcomed a grandchild – while her older sister was still dealing with losing her husband to COVID, friends said.
Gloria Medlin McCrimmon, 72, died alongside her sisters Viola Medlin Singletary, 74, and Cheryl Elaine Medlin, 63, when a 2023 Kia crossed the center line and struck their silver Hyundai on Highway 690 on Wednesday.
“[Gloria] was so delighted to have that new grandbaby,” Peggy Capel, who went to church with McCrimmon, told The Pilot of the last time she saw her friend of two decades.
“She came out on the porch with that baby and she let me hold it. She was taking care of it and that was her joy.”
Capel added that McCrimmon was “sort of a caregiver” in their West Southern Pines community.
“She helped a couple of people that needed help in their homes. She sewed and was a good seamstress,” she recalled.
The Rev. Paul Murphy, pastor of the West Southern Pines Trinity AME Zion Church, told the outlet that McCrimmon’s sisters shared her generosity.
“They lived their lives as examples of Christian ministry and action. They never had to say it or wear it like a badge on their sleeves,” he said of the trio.
“[Viola] was always making sure that her little sisters were OK. I can only say the nicest things about all three of them.”
Singeltary’s benevolence continued even in the face of great personal loss, as when her husband died of COVID-19 two years ago, Capel added.
“Viola would always ride in the back [on trips to Carthage for election meetings] and when she got out she would say, ‘I left something for you.’ She would always leave money,” she remembered.
“She would always leave something…in the backseat. She was a generous person.”
Medlin would have celebrated her 64th birthday on Thursday. In the wake of the tragedy, friends and family gathered at her home to release balloons in her honor.
“She lost her life because of somebody being careless, and that shouldn’t have happened,” Medlin’s daughter, Adreal, said of her mother, who she remembered as pious and quick to share a joke and a smile.
Medlin’s granddaughter, Brianna England, said she took comfort in the fact that the sisters died together.
“I believe they were together for a reason. God makes no mistakes, but it’s hard to see them gone so soon,” she explained.
“They loved to serve the community and were a big part of the community,” the sisters’ uncle, Ronnie Durant, told The Pilot.
“They will be really missed.”
McCrimmon’s granddaughter, Jamiah McKayhan, said she was more like a mother than a grandmother, and added that she was grateful she and her baby were able to spend quality time with all three women.
“They meant a lot to the community. Always with a helping hand. They just loved everyone,” she lamented, noting that she and her grandmother were already making plans for Thanksgiving.
Authorities who responded to the crash said it was one of the most serious smash-ups they have seen, The Pilot reported.
The driver of the Kia, who also died at the scene, has not been identified pending family notification, while the passenger was airlifted to a Chapel Hill hospital.