High school sweethearts Bailey Bennett and Brookelynne Dowdy were looking forward to welcoming their first child in just three more months. Now, their families instead are planning funerals for the couple and their unborn daughter.
Bennett and Dowdy, both 20, and their friend 22-year-old Tristan Stormy Lane Black, all died in a horrific crash Saturday night in Cullman County. Another friend survived but was seriously injured. “They loved life,’' said Frankie Adams, Dowdy’s father.
The crash happened at 10:26 p.m. on Alabama 69 near Alabama 91, about five miles southwest of Bremen. The victims, along with another 17-year-old female friend, were on their way home from dinner at Logan’s when they were killed.
Authorities said the friends were in a 2005 Honda Element driven by Black that was struck by a 2010 Cadillac CTS driven by 37-year-old Kristi L. Cordes.
Cordes’ vehicle crossed the center line and struck the Honda Element. Black, Dowdy and Bennett all were pronounced dead at the scene. Their 17-year-old friend was airlifted to the hospital where she has already undergone two surgeries.
Cordes also was transported by helicopter to a hospital. The crash remains under investigation by Alabama State Troopers.
Bailey Bennett and Brookelynn Dowdy, both 20, and their unborn child died Saturday, Nov. 22, 2020 in a crash that also killed their good friend Tristan Stormy Lane Black. (Contributed)
Black was a 2017 graduate of Lynn High School. “He was a ‘free spirit’ who had a big heart,’' according to his obituary. “Tristan never met a stranger and will always be remembered as a good brother, son, and friend.”
Bennett and Dowdy began dating their freshman year in high school and had been together ever since. They were ecstatic about the impending birth of their daughter, Madelyn Grace. “She was glowing,’' Adams said of daughter. “I told her, ‘My baby’s growing up.”
Dowdy was born in Birmingham and was a 2019 graduate of Lynn High School.
Tristian Stormy Lane Black (Contributed)
“Brookelynne loved everybody, especially her nephews, Samuel, Carter and Jett and her fur baby, Willy,’' according to her obituary. “She loved taking pictures, having bonfires and hanging out with her friends, being on TikTok and Snapchatting. She and Bailey loved laughing and joking with each other. Brookelynne was a precious person and was an inspiration to all who knew her.”
“She was a social butterfly,’' her dad said. “Everybody loved her.”
Bennett was born March 9, 2000 in Winfield. He played football for the Lynn High School Bears. “Bailey loved hanging out with his friends and listening to his subs,’' his obituary reads. “He especially loved spending time with his girlfriend Brookelynne.”
The friends will have a joint funeral. Visitation will be held on Friday, Nov. 27, from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. at Nichols Funeral Home in Haleyville. Their funerals will be held on Saturday, November 28, at 11 a.m. with burial to follow in Ashridge Community Cemetery.
GoFundMe’s have been set up to help with the funerals. Donations can be made here and here. Donations can also be made directly at Nichols Funeral home.
Adams said everyone is taking the deaths hard but they’re trying to be strong. “We’re just trying to get the kids buried,’' he said. “It’s hard when you lose one.”