Dakota Noel, 18, died after losing control of his car Tuesday night.
It happened around 9 p.m. along Locke Mountain Road in Frankstown Township, Blair County. Noel was thrown from the car and died at the scene.
His 17-year-old girlfriend was also injured. Police said neither were wearing seatbelts. They are still investigating the cause of the crash.
A memorial for Noel stands at the site of the crash now. Friends stopped by throughout the day to pay their respects. An impromptu procession of trucks with loud horns – reportedly Noel’s favorite – drove through a crowd early Wednesday evening.
“I’m just completely shocked that it was him,” said Skylar Steinbugl. Steinbugl has known Noel since third grade. He and other students said hearing news their friend had passed did not register right away.
“I woke up. My mom told me. She’s like, ‘Dakota passed away,'” Steinbugl said. “I was like… at first I was like silent, shocked. I didn’t want to believe it.”
“I didn’t believe it was him,” said friend Amanda Maus, who met Noel in seventh grade. “It still really hasn’t sunk in yet, but definitely not something I was prepared for.”
“I was very upset, shocked, didn’t believe it,” school friend Delaney Clemens said. “I texted his buddies and made sure they were okay. It was very upsetting.”
“I received a phone call last night about ten-til-two in the morning and I was up til about 3:30 a.m. getting everything in place in regards to the counselors, getting the faculty together, things like that to make sure when the students got here we were organized,” said Hollidaysburg Area High School Principal Dr. Maureen Letcher.
If you ask those who knew him, the first thing they remember about Noel is his smile.
“He was always helpful, nice, always had a smile on his face,” Steinbugl said. “Never mad. And if you ever needed help with something, he was there.”
“He was definitely funny, but he would do anything for anyone,” said friend Maddy Maurer. “He would give you the shirt off his back in a second and not even think twice about it.”
“He knew how to light up a room whenever he was around… just knew how to make anyone smile,” Maus remembered. “He was a great kid.”
“He was easy to talk to,” Dr. Letcher said, smiling. “He was just a kind of salt of the earth kind of guy. That’s what he was. And he will be truly missed because he really was just a great guy.”
Noel would have graduated in two weeks from Hollidaysburg Area High School.
“He should be walking with us and graduating with us in two weeks, getting his diploma,” Maus said.
“It’s hard,” Clemens said. “Try not to cry. Gotta stay strong.”
Dr. Letcher said students are working on some ideas to honor their friend at graduation.
Friends will be received Friday, 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. at Sorge Funeral Home, Inc., in Hollidaysburg.
A funeral service will be held 11 a.m. Saturday, May 14th at Evangelical Lutheran Church, 1200 4th Avenue, Duncansville by Rev. Jaime G. Olson and Vicar Matthew Best.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given to Mending Hearts Animal Rescue, PO Box 97, Hollidaysburg, Pa. 16648.
