Kayla Shepard, a 2008 Graduate of Liberty High School and member of the Pink Ladies and Diva vocal groups there, has died in an automobile crash near Bakersfield. She was 19.

News reports said three people died in the accident, which occurred at about 3 p.m. Wednesday on Highway 46 between Wasco and Interstate 5. The California Highway Patrol said the Toyota in which Shepard was a passenger was attempting to pass another car on the two-lane road. When the driver did not have room to return to his own lane, he lost control and slammed head-on into a Dodge Ram pick-up truck.

The driver and another female passenger in the Toyota were also killed; the driver of the pick-up was hospitalized with moderate injuries according to reports.

A family friend said Shepard was returning from a concert in Las Vegas when the accident occurred. Bob Shepard, her father, said Kayla was currently living in San Francisco and planning to attend college there. Kayla is survived by her father, her mother Maureen, and her sister Alyssa, a senior at Liberty.

Bob Shepard said funeral arrangements are still being made. In the meantime, the Kayla Shepard Memorial Fund has been established at East Contra Costa Bank (Bank of Ag) on First Street in Brentwood. Donations can be made at any ECC Bank.

Also, a memorial table has been set up at His & Hers Formal Wear, 625 First Street in Brentwood. Donations of flowers, cards or checks may be dropped off there for delivery to the family.

This article will be updated as information becomes available.



UPDATE 6:45 PM THURSDAY

A candlelight vigil for Kayla is set for Veterans Park at Balfour Road and Griffith Lane in Brentwood for 6:30 p.m. Thursday 10-29-09.