Published: November 07, 2008 03:01 pm      

Palestine High School teacher killed in crash

PALESTINE — Palestine High School students and staff are mourning the loss of first-year teacher Dr. Ryndae Halter, 54, of Farmers Branch, who was killed in a car accident on U.S. 79 Thursday night.

According to a DPS spokesperson in the Jacksonville office, Halter was headed eastbound on U.S. 79 approximately 3.9 miles west of Jacksonville at 7:20 p.m. Thursday when her 2006 Nissan ran off the road and struck the rear of a tanker truck parked in the shoulder.

Halter was pronounced dead at the scene by Cherokee County Justice of the Peace Vera Foreman. The driver of the truck, Juan Palomares, was not injured.

According to PHS Career and Technology Education director Peggy Herrington, Halter was a registered nurse and attorney from the Dallas area who taught five classes in the Health-Science Technology Education program.

Halter was staying with family in the Neches area until her husband and children made the move to Palestine. She also had other family members residing in the Bullard area.

“This was her first year working for us, and she was really good at teaching,” Herrington said. “We were trying to rebuild that department and having her in it was certainly an asset.”

Herrington reported a somber mood among Halter’s students and fellow teachers Friday, adding that counselors had been on hand to help them deal with the tragedy.

“We are having counselors in the classrooms with students to talk about the loss,” she said. “She was well liked by her students and teachers and will be greatly missed here at PHS.”

Funeral arrangements for Halter have not yet been announced.

DPS Trooper Jimmy Lee Dunklin investigated the accident.