Anna Streetman, News Editor
William Barton, a 19-year-old student at Kennesaw State, was killed when a minivan crashed through the front windows of the Buffalo Wild Wings on Barrett Parkway.
The accident occurred Friday, Feb. 6 around 4:30 p.m. The driver of the minivan has been identified as 67-year-old Carol Shipley of Woodstock. Preliminary information from investigators and eyewitnesses indicate that Shipley was attempting to pull into a parking spot in front of the restaurant when she crashed through the front glass area. 22-year-old Lindsey Terronez, an employee at the restaurant, was also hit, and was treated at Wellstar Kennestone Hospital for non-life threatening injuries.
“I just watched the Super Bowl with him,” says Jake Lipsiner, an exercise science major. “He seemed like a nice kid. I can’t believe he’s dead.”
Josh Smith has been friends with Barton ever since kindergarten. Their families vacationed together and they were “like family” according to Smith. Both grew up in McDonough together. Smith is a baseball player for South Georgia State College who dedicated his game Saturday to Barton.
“He was the kind of friend you could trust to be there when it mattered the most,” Smith said in a statement to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “Somebody like that deserves to be recognized, and I’m going to make sure of that.”
Barton is survived by a younger brother and both his parents.
“We are deeply saddened by this loss, and especially impacted by the tragic circumstances,” says Dean of Students Michael Sanseviro. “Anytime we lose someone so young and with such great future potential, it reminds us of how fragile life can be. We extend our deepest condolences to the family and friends impact by this loss.”
Sanseviro added that Kennesaw State has incredible resources to assist students during difficult times. He encourages anybody going through a hard time to visit Counseling and Psychological Services at http://www.kennesaw.edu/studentsuccessservices/cps/.
