Two weeks after a Unit 5 school bus transporting a JV girls basketball team collided head-on with a semi-truck traveling the wrong way on Interstate 74, the coach is thanking the community.
Unit 5 spokesperson Dayna Brown read a message from Normal Community West High School Coach Steve Price Friday. In the message, Price said he is "overwhelmed by the community's support."
“Each day is definitely better,” Price wrote. “My school, family, and students are helping me get through it. To have your students, peers and colleagues reach out makes you feel so grateful and blessed.”
The team's long-time volunteer Charlie Crabtree, who Price called the "biggest fan and supporter of Normal West students,” was killed in the accident along with the semi’s driver.
Price wrote he tries to take some good out of the tragic event.
“The kids were OK and they handled themselves remarkably in an emergency situation. I am so proud of them,” the message read. “I want to thank all of the surrounding communities and the EMTs, who responded so quickly. I am grateful for the bus driver, who handled it as well as he could, and I wish him a quick recovery.”
Price and the bus's driver Mark Kuhn remain hospitalized undergoing physical therapy.
Also Friday, Brandt Industries presented a $5,000 check to the Unit 5 Educational Foundation in honor of Crabtree, Price, Kuhn, and the JV team.
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