| Special to the Enquirer

Randy Garrison

Hartselle Enquirer

For the second week in a row, students and faculty at Priceville High School are mourning the death of one of their own. On Sat., April 16, Carmen Johnson, a 15-yearold PHS sophomore lost her life while swimming around a boat dock at a family lake house in Smith Lake. Johnson, the daughter of Jimmy and Casey Johnson was a varsity cheerleader at PHS.

Johnson and other friends had been riding jet skis and laying out and jumping in the water Saturday. The teen drowned shortly after noon. Another Priceville student, Reagan Gargis, was also injured and carried to Cullman Regional Hospital and then transferred to Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Hunstville. She has been released.

Winston County Coroner Larry Gilliland says Johnson’s death has been ruled an accidental drowning. However, he mentioned that electricity was running through the boat dock and electrocution could have caused the drowning. Other sources said Gargis was shocked as she climbed a ladder to get back on the boat dock. An autopsy may determine if electrocution contributed to Johnson’s drowning.

Priceville High School principal Mark Mason had been cutting grass and came inside when his wife told him the news. He said the same thought came to his mind as last Saturday when he heard the news of Dakota Parker’s death. “It has to be someone else, not Carmen,” Mason said.

Dakota Parker, a 2015 Priceville graduate was killed after being struck by a CXS train in Auburn, where he was a student on Sat. April 9.

The town of Priceville as well as Priceville High School is still in shock and mourning Parker’s death, and now another student has lost her life. Mason said  the students organized an event at Veterans Park on Saturday night, just to be together and console each other and pray for Carmen’s family.

Mason opened the doors to Priceville High on Sun., April 17, for those who wanted to gather and pray for Carmen’s family and the other students at the school. Carmen’s family also attended and was a chance for others to share their condolences with the Johnsons. Over 500 attended the event. This offered the kids a chance to talk, laugh and to cry over their friend.

Several youth pastors and pastors attended the event and offered to come to school on Monday.

Johnson’s parents were able to see the impact their daughter had on the school, and commented on how they appreciated the community’s support during this tragedy.

Mason said the students began Monday with an assembly with Brad Eades, Hospice of the Valley Bereavement Chaplain addressing the students. He talked about there being no right or wrong way to grieve, and encouraged the students to get their feelings out.

Thirty pastors and youth pastors along with two counselors from Decatur City Schools were on hand to help the students on Monday.  After the assembly, the school went into advisory time. Each student is assigned an advisor that stays with him or her for his or her four years at PHS. Teachers were also informed that if a student needed one-on-one counseling this could be provided. There were almost enough volunteer counselors that each room could have one. This carried on through first and second periods. During third period, the school tried to get back on schedule. Hospice volunteers followed Carmen’s class schedule during the day and spent most of the day talking with the classmates who would notice the empty desk where Carmen should have been sitting.

Mason said he would really miss Carmen and could not believe she would not be coming back. He described her as energetic, vibrant, never met a stranger and loved life. She had a bright smile, was very popular and had connections with each grade, he also mentioned. “If I had 500 of Carmen the school would run itself,” Mason said.

Shannon and Kevin Parker, parents of Dakota Parker, also attended the vigil Sunday evening as well.

Priceville had already lost two other former students earlier in the year after a car accident on Jan. 4 claimed the lives of Jacob Lovell and Dylan Allan.

The town of Priceville is a close-knit community and will continue to rally around the families of Carmen and Dakota as well as the Lovell and Allan families. Priceville will make sure all of the young people are remembered.

Facebook posts from friends of Parker and Johnson show how much each meant to their friends, both at Priceville High and other places as well.