EX-KELLY VALEDICTORIAN DIES IN ACCIDENT

BENTON, Mo. -- A 19-year-old man died in a farm-related accident involving a four wheel all-terrain vehicle, the Scott County Sheriff's Department said.

Daniel Mothershead was driving the ATV with his 14-year-old brother, Andrew, when the accident occurred on Tuesday, Sheriff Bill Ferrell said. They had been returning to a field to rake hay about 1 p.m.

It seems that the two were driving along a road and hit a rough spot, said Scott Amick, Scott County Coroner.

"It's hard to tell exactly how everything happened since Andrew hit his head and lost consciousness," Amick said.

Andrew was taken to St. Francis Medical Center by ambulance, treated for minor injuries and released on Wednesday.

Daniel Mothershead died from head injuries, Amick said.

The boys' father, Robert Mothershead, had died in February from cancer, said Ed Carter, pastor of First Baptist Church of Oran.

"This has been a devastation to everyone here," Carter said.

Nineteen-year-old Mothershead had recently completed his freshman year at the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he was studying agricultural journalism.

At Kelly High School, Mothershead was a model not only for students, but adults, said Don Moore, principal.

"As we were sitting around in the office today remembering Daniel, we pretty much all agreed on a few things," Moore said. "If you were going to create a perfect teen, or a perfect person, it would have been Daniel."

Mothershead played and coached basketball and swimming, ran track and cross country, and participated in student council, yearbook, the foreign language club and other groups. He graduated from Kelly as valedictorian.

As an officer with the state Future Farmers of America board, Mothershead spoke at many Missouri schools, Moore said.

"He had so much potential as a public speaker," Carter said. "He could lead people. He was a motivator."

Not long ago, Moore said he noticed Mothershead talking with some other teen-agers on a street in Benton. As he overhead, Mothershead was trying to talk them out of some bad habits.

While in high school, Mothershead was nominated as chaplain for his church youth group, his pastor said.

"He was a great role model for me," Carter said.