Former Hampshire student killed in truck accident
By Dan O'Brien, Collegian Staff
September 26, 2005
NORTHAMPTON - A man who hit and killed a former Hampshire College student while she was riding her bicycle on Thursday could face criminal charges, according to Northampton police.
Details of the accident are under investigation, say police, who have not yet filed charges against the driver, Rafael Sevilla, 25, of Indian Orchard.
Margaret "Meg" Sanders, 23, of Easthampton died after being hit by an armored truck on Elm St., just outside the gates of Smith College around 9 a.m.
Witnesses say the truck took a right turn and hit Sanders as she was riding along side it.
Sevilla had to be treated at Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton for emotional trauma. In the emergency room, he reportedly asked police, "how bad is the person hurt?", unaware Sanders had already died.
Northampton police are still looking for witnesses near the accident to come forward. Anyone with information is urged to call 587-1105.
Friends of Sanders say her bicycle was her primary mode of transportation, riding it day and night, year round.
A memorial was held for Sanders at 5 p.m. the afternoon after she died. Roughly 100 people attended the service.
Hampshire College President Ralph J. Hexter announced that a memorial would soon be held in Sanders' benefit.
"Meg was a remarkable young woman who was held in the highest esteem by all who knew and worked with her," Hexter said to the Daily Hampshire Gazette.
Sanders was heavily involved in fundraising for AIDS research after both her parents died of AIDS in the early 1990s in Chattanooga, Tenn. She was raised by her aunt.
Sanders participated in the Massachusetts Red Ribbon Ride and a volunteer of AIDS Care Hampshire County. She most recently worked at a women's shelter for domestic abuse victims in Northampton, Safe Passage and a bookbindery in Easthampton, Wide Awake Garage.
She graduated from Hampshire College in 2004 with a concentration in book art.
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Copyright Daniel O�Brien and the Massachusetts Daily Collegian. This article may not be redistributed without written permission under United States law