ALACHUA COUNTY, FL:

     A pair of Alachua County School crossing guards have lost their lives on the roads. 

     They were killed in a frightful traffic crash last night. 
    
     The accident occurred last night in Williston.

     Today i spoke with some people who work closely with the couple and they told me this loss doesn't just affect the children they see on a daily basis but its a loss for everyone in the county.

     Mikell McKoy a local Crossing Guard, "She had a great heart for people its indescribable."
 
     It was that heart that encouraged 77 year old Julia Barlow to become a crossing guard at Kanapaha Middle School.

     A job both she and her husband 76 year old Wilbur Barlow had a passion for. 

     Sheriff Sadie Darnell from the Alachua County Sheriff's Office worked with the Barlow's and she said, "Every single day they were committed to doing what was necessary to ensure the children's safety  but more importantly they wanted to make a difference in the lives of the adults and children that they interacted with."

     But yesterday was their last day helping children get safely across the street. 

     The couple was traveling down County Road 335 North of Williston when they hit a truck trailer that was trying to back into a private lot just off the road. 

     When people heard about the couples tragedy on facebook many were shocked and devastated.
     Saying things like, " I wish I had one more time to tell them I loved and appreciated them." 

     While remembering the couple in the jobs they loved so much saying, "always just cheerful and so diligent about the kid's safety." 

     Assistant Principal Melissa Singleton at Kanapaha Middle School  believes these crossing guards are crucial to students everyday. 

      And she said, "They have a kind word for the child every morning they greet them send them on their way tell them to have a great day and on their way home they ask them how their day was." 

     But now those greetings will be sorely missed. 

     And Crossing Guard Mikell McKoy said, "they are  irreplaceable...yeah we have people filling in the positions right now but I heard one little boy say 'where is the crossing guard at down there'". 

     For now the Alachua County Sheriff's office has assigned other crossing guards to assist in the crossing of students at the schools Mr. and Mrs. Barlow worked at for so many years. 

     The driver of the truck 46 year old Floyd Watt of Winter Park, has not yet been charged, but an investigation is under way.

     Bailey MyersTV20 News.