The Caney Creek High School community is mourning the loss of former student Autumn Nicole Milburn, who died in a car accident Friday morning.

Bridgit Sigford, a close family friend, has helped organize a GoFundMe to help the Milburn’s family with funeral expenses.

According to a report from the Montgomery County Police Reporter, Milburn drove off of the road soon after 6 a.m., crossing a ditch and slamming into a storage building. Her vehicle continued driving on Terry’s Feed Store property until she hit a post near a church. The cause of the crash has not been determined.

“I saw this girl posting (an article) and she said I used to see her around school,” Milburn’s friend Katia Almazan said. “It’s so sad; I started looking through who would share and comment maybe they said who it is because it didn’t say who it was just an 18-year-old girl. 

“I was looking through it and I saw her aunt’s and her uncle’s comment on it. I saw her (aunt’s) profile and she said ‘we were really devastated’ and I looked at what she posted – pictures of (Autumn). I was like, ‘really, it can’t be Autumn. It can’t be her.’ She just posted on Instagram the day before and now she’s gone.”

Milburn recently texted Almazan asking her to hang out since they haven’t seen each other in a long time.

Some of her former CCHS teachers are also mourning the loss.

“I read about the accident, but at that time, the victim wasn’t  identified,” English teacher Christine Zimmer said. “I saw a GoFundMe post on Facebook with her picture.  That’s how I found out. I was devastated. She was way too young.”

The link to GoFundMe had been shared in between friends and family with a picture of Milburn.

“(Autumn) made a huge impact in my life,” Zimmer said. “I moved here from Pennsylvania and she made me feel welcome. She was kind to everyone and stood up for others. She is someone I will never forget.”

Zimmer said Milburn saw her classroom decorations and took an interest. 

“I had Steelers stuff on my classroom wall and one day, she brought me a Steelers sweatshirt,” Zimmer said. “It’s my favorite sweatshirt to this day.  She always asked about my sons who have autism, and seemed genuinely interested in them.”

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Almazan said everyone should remember Milburn as a sweet girl.

“She’s gone now and we should teach each other now as teenagers to not let anything happen to any of us again,” Almazan   said. “She has been through so much.”

Funeral Services for Autumn Nicole Milburn organized by Bridgit Sigford