Published: June 13, 2008 08:41 pm      

A ‘beautiful’ voice has been lost

By ROGER SCHNEIDER

and JESSE DAVIS

news@goshennews.com

Church and school communities in two states are mourning the death of a Goshen girl who died from injuries she received in a car crash.

Bethany Curton, 17, had graduated from Concord High School May 30 and planned to continue honing her vocal music talents in college in late summer. But when the Ford Mustang she was a passenger in left the road a quarter mile from her home and church Tuesday night, she was critically injured. Her friend, and the car’s driver, Jimmy Scott, 24, was killed in the crash. Bethany died from her injuries Thursday, hours after about 200 members of her Concord and church families gathered at a candlelight vigil to pray for her.

Curtain is the daughter of Michael and Annette Curton, who serve as pastor and musical director at Apostolic Pentecostal Church at C.R.s 36 and C.R. 15.

Jimmy and Bethany were driving to that church when the accident occurred. The Curtons have been living at the church while their new home was being purchased. They were supposed to sign the closing papers for the purchase Thursday.

Annette Curton said the friends spent much of the day together before the crash. They had played Putt-Putt golf, visited Bethany’s older sister at her place of employment and watched a movie at Scott’s North Greene Road home. Bethany called her mother shortly before the accident to tell her she was on her way home.

Mrs. Curtain said her daughter was a talented vocalist and was very active in school and church events. She provided sign-language interpretation at the church, had been a member of the Concord Singers, the Key Club, Student Council, participated in school plays, musicals and powder puff football games.

She had plans to attend Indiana Bible College in Indianapolis and earn a degree in Christian music. She was then going to transfer to one of the Indiana University campuses to major in music and Spanish. Her ultimate goal was to return to Concord as a teacher.

She had earned enough credits in high school to begin her college education during her senior year. Her mother said Bethany attended Indiana University at South Bend to get a head start on her college education.

The Curtons are originally from Fenton, Mich., where Bethany attended Fenton High School and the Curtons attended an Apostolic church.

That dual community relationship will be revisited by the family next week as they hold funeral services first in Fenton and then locally. Because the attendance at the funeral is expected to be large, the pastor of the First Apostolic Church in Mishawaka has offered his larger church for the service. Details of the funeral services are expected to be printed in local newspapers Sunday.

Daniel Blevins of Ligonier is youth pastor at the Goshen Apostolic Church. He said the church has 100 to 120 people attend on Sundays. “We are a pretty tight group,” he said.

And that group included Jimmy Scott playing drums in the praise band and also acting as sound man.

In addition to his church participation, Scott served as student manager for the Goshen High School football team for several years.

“He was always upbeat,” former GHS football coach Brad Park said. “He was eager to do anything he was asked to do.”

Scott, who was unable to play on the team due to an injury, knew everything that went on during the practices and would have the equipment set up by the time it was needed.

“He was eager to do anything he could to make practice run smoothly. He was a great young man at that age,” Park said.

Bethany sang at the church every week.

Asked about her singing talent, Blevins said Bethany’s voice was simply “beautiful.”

That was the same impression that Rene Cocanower, student services director at Concord had of her talent.

She attended Bethany’s last concert with the Concord Singers, where she sang a solo.

“I was just stunned. It really struck me that she had such a wonderful voice,” Cocanower said.

Asked if she knew Bethany, Cocanower said, of course, everyone at Concord did. “She didn’t know a stranger. She was just someone who knew people and people knew her.”

English teacher Layla Wirt had the same positive impression of Bethany. “She was nice to everyone and made friends with everyone,” Wirt said.

That universality of acceptance and giving earned Bethany the title of “social butterfly.” The Concord students voted to give her that title in her senior yearbook.

Wirt said she was moved by the impromptu memorial service for Bethany at Concord Thursday. As text messages of her death made its way around the Concord community, more than 200 students went to the school to pray for her, according to Wirt.

“It showed how many lives she touched,” Wirt said. “She was an amazing and spiritual person who loved life and she will be missed dearly.”