Story courtesy of The Roanoke Times at Roanoke.com
Memorial Service/Donations Update: June 28, 9 PM Eastern:
A memorial service for the family and friends of Paul Hershey will be held at the Grove United Methodist Church at 1020 Tyler Ave, Radford, on Saturday, July 1, at 10:30 a.m. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider donations to The Paul Hershey Memorial Scholarship Fund at the Radford University Office of University Advancement, P.O. Box 6893, Radford, Virginia 24142.
Radford assistant communications director Paul Hersey dies 2 weeks after crash
by Mark Berman and Amy Friedenberger of The Roanoke Times
RADFORD, Va. – Paul Hershey, an assistant athletic communications director at Radford University, died Tuesday at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital as the result of injuries sustained in a car accident two weeks ago in Radford.
He was 40 years old.
“Just a tragedy,” Radford athletic director Robert Lineburg said. “He’s going to be really missed. … It’s been a hard day. It’s been a tough two weeks.”
The June 13 collision took place at the intersection of Rock Road and Lovely Mount Drive, Radford City police said the following day. Hershey was taken to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital with life-threatening injuries, police said.
Hershey had attempted to make a left-hand turn from Rock Road onto Lovely Mount Drive in his 2005 Toyota Sedan about 6 p.m. He failed to yield the right of way to a 2017 Nissan SUV traveling east on Rock Road, police said.
Hershey was on his way home from work when the accident happened, said his colleagues.
“He was turning into the road that goes to his apartment,” Radford assistant athletic director for communications Jordan Childress said. “He was probably 100 feet from his apartment.”
“I’ve driven that road where he had that accident … thousands and thousands of times,” Lineburg said.
The driver of the Nissan was taken to New River Valley Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, police have said.
Hershey had worked at Radford since August 2015, following a three-year stint at Coastal Carolina.
“Paul was very diligent,” Lineburg said. “He was a really, really good writer. Our student-athletes really enjoyed being around him, as did our coaches.”
Hershey was in charge of the news releases, media relations and other communications tasks for the Radford men’s basketball team.
“An all-around good guy,” Highlanders men’s basketball coach Mike Jones said. “A hard-working guy who was a team player that did whatever was asked of him. He would be very thorough with the job that he did. The quality of work that he put out was always top of the line.”
Hershey also handled media relations for the Radford softball, women’s soccer, women’s track and field and men’s and women’s cross country teams.
He kept colleagues laughing with plenty of one-liners, said Childress.
“It’s still tough to walk in the office down there and see his chair and his desk and he’s not sitting there working on something,” Childress said.
Before working at Coastal Carolina, Hershey was a graduate assistant in the sports information office at Ithaca. He earned his masters degree from Ithaca in 2012.
Hershey was a sports writer for more than 10 years at newspapers in New York and North Carolina before moving into athletic communications.
Hershey graduated from Penn State in 1998 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism.
When the Penn State football team played in the Rose Bowl last season, Hershey was in the stands.
“He loved the Highlanders and he loved Penn State,” Lineburg said.
Hershey, who had been in the intensive care unit, is survived by his parents and other family members.
“I’m just glad the family was able to be there with him [at the hospital],” Childress said. “Someone’s been there with him every day.”
Bio from Radford Athletics
Paul Hershey
Assistant Director of Communications (WSOC, XC, MBB, TRACK, SOFTBALL)
Paul Hershey joined Radford Athletics as an assistant director for communications in August 2015. He is the primary contact for women’s soccer, cross country, track and field and softball.
Hershey previously served as a media relations assistant at Coastal Carolina from 2012-15, where he was the primary contact for women’s soccer, women’s indoor track and field and softball for three years. He also was the cross country contact for one season and assisted with statistical and gameday operations for football, men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball. Hershey served as the host SID for the Big South Conference Women’s Soccer and Softball Championships during the 2013-14 academic year, helping to coordinate all media relations efforts for the events.
Before going to Coastal Carolina, Hershey was a graduate assistant in the sports information office at Ithaca College in New York in 2011-12. While at Ithaca, he worked with many of the school’s 25 athletic programs, with emphasis in men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s basketball and softball.
Prior to beginning his athletic communications career, Hershey worked as a sports writer for more than 10 years, with daily newspapers in Corning, N.Y. and Concord, N.C. While with both papers, he covered a variety of high school and collegiate sports, including four ACC men’s basketball tournaments, along with professional events ranging from the NBA and NFL to NASCAR and golf. Along with his writing duties, Hershey was also responsible for editing and design work with each publication.
Hershey graduated from Penn State University with a bachelor’s degree in journalism in 1998 and earned a Master of Science degree in sport management from Ithaca College in 2012.