Black ribbons tied to the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house in honor of Price Thornal. (Quentin Winstine/The DM)
Returning home to surprise his father for his birthday, freshman public policy major Price Thornal was killed Friday in a car accident.
Police reports indicate that around 2:15 a.m. Friday Thornal fell asleep at the wheel while passing through Georgia on his way to Tallahassee, Fla., and collided head-on with another vehicle.
Price, a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity, was remembered by family and friends Monday morning in Tallahassee.
His SAE brothers have placed black ribbons on the from of their house as a sign of mourning for Thornal, and 40 actives traveled from Oxford for the funeral services in Tallahassee on Monday afternoon.
Dean of Students Sparky Reardon offered condolences on behalf of the university.
“The university mourns the loss of every student, particularly at this time Price Thornal,” Reardon said.
Reardon said Thornal’s status as a freshman makes his loss even more of a tragedy.
“It’s sad any time that we lose a student, but when you lose a freshman who has 3 full years ahead of him, it’s particularly painful,” Reardon said. “Our hearts and prayers go out to his family and friends, in particular his SAE fraternity brothers.”
Fellow Tallahassee native and Ole Miss freshman business major Hooper Wilkinson, attended Thornal’s funeral.
“Price didn’t know a stranger,” Wilkinson said.
Thornal was kind-hearted and remembered as a social fixture.
“He lit up a room and put a smile on everyone’s face,” Wilkinson said of Thornal.
“He was the kind of person who wasn’t satisfied unless everyone was having a good time.
“He didn’t have a bad bone in his body.”
