Community remembers former LMA student killed in MD wreck

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Barbara Smith Shumpert taught Rhiannon Griffin when the latter was a sophomore at Laurence Manning Academy.

"She was smart, respectful and funny," said Shumpert. "Over the years she has been one of the students who would cross my mind, and I would wonder where her life journey took her."

Griffin's journey would take her to the U.S. Navy, where she served for seven years as an electronics technician and sexual assault victim's advocate. She would ultimately land at BAE Systems in Lexington Park, Maryland, where she worked as a technician.

"She was one who stood out in my mind because she was not one who followed the crowd," Shumpert said of her former student. "She was her own person (and was) quite comfortable being herself and following the beat of her own drum."

Griffin, 27, died Friday, Sept. 8, 2017, as the result of injuries received in an automobile wreck in Lexington Park.

Jane Benton was also a former teacher, having Griffin during seventh-grade science.

"She was the kind of student that made teaching rewarding," said Benton. "She loved nature, inquiry and exploration. I kept up with her through her wonderful mother, Cindy (Nerheim). I regret losing contact with her after seventh grade, bur flipping through pictures of field trips brought a flood of memories."

Born Dec. 12, 1989, in Greenville, Rhiannon Marie Griffin was a daughter of Cindy D. Nerheim and William Bradford Griffin. She graduated from Laurence Manning Academy before joining the U.S. Navy.

Tracy Ebach was a coworker at BAE Systems.

"I've only worked with her for a short time, but she was such a sweet person" Ebach said. "I was truly saddened when I heard the news."

Maryland State Police reported that Griffin was killed in a head-on wreck while trying to avoid an oncoming vehicle. Reports indicate the wreck happened about 3:09 p.m. Sept. 8 at Poplar Ridge Road in Hermanville, Maryland. Police said that a GMC Terrain, operated by 28-year-old Sierra Yobani Hernandez, was traveling southbound on Maryland Highway 236 when the Terrain traveled head-on into oncoming traffic.

Griffin, driving a green Ford Ranger, was traveling northbound on the same highway and, according to witnesses, made attempts to take evasive action to avoid being struck by the Terrain.

Griffin attempted to pull to the shoulder of the road, but the Terrain continued onto the shoulder, striking Griffin head-on.

Griffin died at the scene, and Hernandez was flown to Prince George's Shock Trauma. Her condition as of Sept. 10 was listed as "stable."

Griffin's father posed on social media that words could not express the loss he and Griffin's family feel.

"Rhiannon was so young, and there was still a lot to come for her," he said. "I was looking forward to watching her grow and mature and waiting to see where life would take her. She was in the Navy for seven years and had already traveled the world. She already had some adventures, and I was hoping she would have some more."

Former neighbor Kathy Evans-DeDeyn said she was proud to see what Griffin had done with her life.

"I watched her grow up across the street and loved her dearly," Evans-DeDeyn said. "I am so proud of what she did with her life, and the woman she became."

Survivors besides her mother of Sumter and her father of Columbus, Georgia, include her sisters, Desiree V. Goodall (Noah) of Dexter, New York, and Shannon Vincent of Sumter; her brother, Ian Vincent of Dexter; her paternal grandparents, Annette Griffin of Niceville, Florida, and Richard and Cathy Vincent, both of Henderson, New York; and her fur babies, Molly and Cynthia.

A memorial service was held Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, in the chapel of Stephens Funeral Home, with the Rev. Keith Getz officiating.

Memorials may be made to the Sumter SPCA, 1140 S. Guignard Drive, Sumter, SC 29150.

"God has gained an angel, and earth has lost a wonderful young woman," Benton said. "My love and prayers for Rhiannon's family during this difficult time."