Crash kills pastor's wife and 3 friends

HARTFORD TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) - The congregation of a Van Buren County church is mourning the loss of four of its members, including the pastor's wife, who died in a three-vehicle crash in Hartford Township Saturday.

The crash happened on County Road 687, also known as 64th Street, at the intersection of 66th Avenue in Hartford Township. A preliminary investigation shows the driver of a Dodge Caravan was going east on 66th Avenue when she attempted to stop at the intersection, but couldn't and hit a southbound Buick Lucerne. After being struck, the Lucerne was pushed directly into the path of a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck, investigators said.

Four people in the Lucerne were pronounced dead at the scene:

• Celeste Phillips, 67, of Hartford
• Kathryn Maya, 56, of Kalamazoo
• Lou Anne Holcomb, 56, of Hartford
• Charlotte Sieber, 51, of Hartford

The four women were returning home from a dinner outing in Indiana, police told 24 Hour News 8. They were only about a mile from their destination.

Kathryn Maya was the wife of Keeler Baptist Church Pastor Efrain Maya. The two had been married for more than 30 years and had three children.

"I waited and waited for them. I couldn't get no answer from their phones," he recalled to 24 Hour News 8 Sunday.

Pastor Maya decided to preach less than 24 hours after the crash and fielded questions about what happened and why God would allow such tragedy.

"It was hard to try to deal with it when it's just your wife, but then when you realize it's all four of them and all at one time," he said. "There's things in this life that we have no control over."

Sieber was the church pianist.

"She's a worker, a giver, she served without hesitation," said Maya.

Phillips and Holcomb were active church members.

"They were some of our leading ladies when it came to praying," said Maya.

Phillips was the owner of the Buick the victims were traveling in and was driving the night of the crash.

"It's like living a nightmare right now. This doesn't happen," said her brother George Heffner.

Holcomb was anxiously awaiting the birth of a new grandchild. One of her sisters told 24 Hour News 8 Holcomb was the "rock of the family" who "held everyone together" and was "always taking care of people."

"She'd walk through the door, she'd raise her hands and say 'Hallelujah!'," said Vernon Holcomb, Lou Anne's husband, tearfully. "So they called her the Hallelujah girl."

Sunday's service at Keeler Baptist Church felt a bit emptier as some church-goers learned of the crash for the first time.

"We basically just know that we have to live our faith. We preach about it, we talk about it, but it's no good if you can't live it," said Maya. "God will get us all through this together."

The driver of the Silverado is 57-year-old Thomas Stewart from Dowagiac. He suffered a severe injury to his hand along with back and neck pain.

There were two people in the Caravan: A 26-year-old female driver from Watervleit who is not being identified and her passenger, 26-year-old Amber Cummings from Coloma. Neither Cummings nor the driver were injured in the crash.

Deputies say the investigation is ongoing. Once completed, it will be sent to the Van Buren County Prosecutor's Office for review.