On Friday, Feb. 28, an SUV carrying five Carleton students spun out of control on icy northbound Minnesota 3. The car went into the southbound lane, where an oncoming semi truck hit it broadside. James Adams ’15, of St. Paul, Minn.; Michael Goodgame ’15, of Westport, Conn. and Paxton Harvieux ’15, of Stillwater, Minn. died in the crash. The two other students – driver William Sparks ’15 of Evanston, Ill. and passenger Conor Eckert ’17 of Seattle, Wash. – were injured. Sparks was declared in satisfactory condition on Sunday, while Eckert remained in critical condition.
According to the Pioneer Press, the State Patrol did not detect alcohol in Sparks’s system or that of the semi driver, Terry Danny, 56, of Pioneer, Tenn. Danny was not injured in the collision. The State Patrol also ruled out speed as a contributing factor in the crash and noted that all five students were wearing seat belts.
The crash occurred just before 3 p.m., as the students were traveling to an ultimate frisbee tournament at Stanford University. Adams, Goodgame and Harvieux all played on Carleton’s ultimate frisbee team and majored in chemistry, political science and computer science, respectively.
In a written statement released to the Pioneer Press on Friday, Carleton President Steven Poskanzer spoke on behalf of the grieving campus community.
“The collective Carleton soul aches for the loss of these three young men,” Poskanzer said. “Right now, we need to focus all our love and compassion on supporting the families and friends of all these young men, along with everyone in our community who cares for them.”
Carleton College held a campus vigil for the students on Saturday at Skinner Memorial Chapel. Funeral services for the three men are being held this week in their hometowns. On Friday, March 7, Oles will be able to purchase Friday Flowers to be delivered to Carleton students’ P.O. boxes and submit notes to a box in Fireside Lounge. Additional information about services, memorial donations and condolences is available on the Carleton College website.
