Meghann Smith’s funeral set for day before she was to be married

The Troup County teacher who was killed last weekend in a three-vehicle crash on I-185 in Columbus will be buried on Friday in her hometown of Thomaston.

The funeral service and burial will come a day before Meghann Smith, 24, was to marry Kenneth Belcher at a ceremony in West Point.

The funeral will be at 4 p.m. at the First Baptist Church of Thomaston with Rev. Bill Barber and Rev. Joy Smith officiating. Burial will follow in the Valley Grove Baptist Church Cemetery.

There will be two visitations on Thursday, one in LaGrange and the other in Thomaston. From 10 a.m. to noon, the family will receive friends at First Presbyterian Church of LaGrange. The second visitation will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. at Fletcher-Day Funeral Home in Thomaston.

Smith is survived by her mother, Kenya Jackson (Gary) Campbell of Thomaston; her father, Barry (Kathy) Smith of LaGrange; her fiance, Kenneth Belcher of LaGrange; her grandparents, Elmo and Betty Jackson of Thomaston and Bruce and Alice Smith of LaGrange; a sister, Olivia K. (Cam) Ellis of LaGrange; two brothers, Matthew D. Barr of Auburn, Ala. and Trey Smith of LaGrange.

The family asks that memorial contributions be made to the Troup County Humane Society, P. O. Box 1351, LaGrange, Ga., 30241. They are asking that the contributions be earmarked for the new Doggie Park sponsored by the Humane Society.

They are also asking for contributions in Smith’s memory to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, 1000 Circle 75 Parkway No. 45, Atlanta, Ga., 30339.

Smith had been in Columbus to celebrate the upcoming wedding with girlfriends. She died as the result of a three-vehicle crash at 1:22 a.m. in the northbound lane of of I-185 between the Airport Thruway exit and the J.R. Allen Parkway exit.

She was a passenger in the back seat of a northbound Kia Soul that was struck by a southbound Nissan Maxima that crossed the median. A Chevrolet also was struck.

Columbus police determined alcohol was a contributing factor in the crash. Columbus Police Sgt. Fred Carnes confirmed on Monday that two of the three drivers involved were believed to be under the influence at the time of the wreck. That did not include the driver of the car in which Smith was a passenger, Carnes said. Smith was pronounced dead at the scene.

This story was originally published October 19, 2016 at 10:39 AM with the headline "Meghann Smith’s funeral set for day before she was to be married."