Urbana school board member killed in 3-vehicle crash

An Urbana City Schools Board of Education member was killed in a three-vehicle crash on Wednesday night.

Warren Stevens, 75, was struck by a Ford Expedition when it failed to stop at a stop sign at the intersection of North Ludlow Road and Kanagy Road in West Liberty, according the Champaign County Sheriff’s Office.

Stevens’ vehicle was then spun and struck again by a Dodge Ram. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Kristen Reed, 44, of St. Paris, and Pauline Reed, 68, of Urbana, were in the Ford Expedition. Both were taken to Mercy Memorial Urbana Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

The driver of the Dodge Ram, Tracy Leighty, 29, of Mt. Gilead, was taken to Mary Rutan Hospital in Bellefontaine with non-life threatening injuries.

Stevens was an Urbana High School alumni, Urbana City Schools Superintendent Charles Thiel said, and talked fondly about his time there. He served in the military and was on the Urbana City Council from 1984 to 1989. He retired from his job at Honda of America in 2009.

Stevens had served as a school board member with Urbana City Schools since 2004, Thiel said.

“He was always happy, always enthusiastic,” Thiel said, qualities that will be missed on the school board.

He was dedicated to the district, Thiel said, and proud of what the board had accomplished while he was a member, especially the $68 million project build new school buildings.

“He was really proud of representing Urbana throughout the state and nation,” Thiel said.

Stevens also served as a member on the Ohio School Board Association, and paid for his own travel expenses in order to lobby for education in Columbus and Washington D.C. every year.

When Stevens ran for re-election for the school board in the fall, he told the Springfield News-Sun he also volunteered with the American Cancer Society, the Transportation Committee of Champaign County, and the Logan and Champaign County Mental Health Board.

“He was always willing to help out,” Thiel said.