David “Alex” Sherrill Jr., 21, of North U.S. 220, Ellerbe, was killed Friday after his vehicle crossed the center line and hit a Richmond County garbage truck head-on.

The accident happened on Highway 73 near the Montgomery County line at approximately 1:15 p.m., according to the North Carolina Highway Patrol.

NCHP Sgt. Dale Defoe said Sherrill was traveling in a Honda sedan, when his car crossed the center line and struck the garbage truck.

There were no passengers in either vehicle at the time of the accident.

Sherrill was transported to FirstHealth Richmond Memorial Hospital in Rockingham where he was pronounced dead.

Ralph Raines, Rockingham, was driving the garbage truck, and wasn’t injured.

Sherrill was a graduate of Richmond Senior High who was attending the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

He was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Rockingham, where his funeral was held Monday morning. He was a member of Praise and Worship Band.

Sherrill was also the drummer for the band Brandon Kirkley and the Firecrackers.

He leaves behind his parents, grandparents and a sister, Ashley, who lives in Raleigh.

Richmond Senior High School Civics and Economics teacher Suzanne Hudson taught Sherrill when he was a sophomore.

“You were automatically drawn to him,” Hudson remembered Monday. “He was a people person, and everyone loved him. It sounds so cliche, but it’s not — he was just an absolutely amazing person.”

She remembers Sherrill as “one of those people you meet in life that it is just absolutely impossible to describe.”

The Highway Patrol said Sherrill wasn’t speeding at the time of the accident. Alcohol was not a factor.

Damage to the Honda vehicle was estimated at $6,000, while there was an estimated $30,000 worth of damage to the garbage truck.

Defoe also said this is the second fatal accident to occur on that stretch of Highway 73 this year.

On Feb. 23, Defoe said another vehicle crossed the center line, in that case striking a tractor trailer, and killing the driver.

Staff Writer Philip D. Brown can be reached at (910) 997-3111 ext. 32, or by e-mail at pbrown@yourdailyjournal.com.

Cameron Quick can be reached at (910) 997-3111 ext. 15 or cquick@yourdailyjournal.com