Local Woman Killed In Balloon Crash Remembered At Her High School
By Jim Melwert
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A Bucks County native and Archbishop Ryan High School graduate who died in a horrific hot-air balloon crash Friday evening in Virginia was remembered fondly at her alma mater on Monday.
44-year-old Ginny Doyle was a standout basketball player at Archbishop Ryan High School, and after she graduated in 1987, she continued that success at the University of Richmond. But on Friday evening, Doyle was on board a hot-air balloon with another member of the University of Richmond staff, when it struck a power line and burst into flames. All three people in the balloon were killed.
Doyle was mentioned by Father John Donia in morning prayers Monday at Archbishop Ryan.
"Today, as we pray, it's very important we pray for her eternal rest," Doyle said. "Also for the comfort and consolation of her family, and all those who mourn her tragic loss at this time."
Archbishop Ryan President Michael McArdle said while Doyle is remembered for her skill on the court, her teachers remember her as more than an athlete.
"As one of her teachers said to me, she had it all," said McArdle. "Her focus was not single, her focus was to be a good human being and everything she did, she gave her all. So it was not just athletics it was not just being an excellent student it was also being an excellent human being."
The pilot of the balloon, Daniel Kirk, and Doyle's co-worker Natalie Lewis were also killed in the crash.
