Teen dies after Pennsbury crash

A popular Chester County teenager eager to begin his second year of art school died early Friday morning in a one-vehicle car crash.

Oscar "Okie" G. Regalado, 19, of Kennett Square, one of two passengers in a 1999 Audi driven by Alexander B. Moore, 19, of West Chester, was taken by helicopter to Crosier Chester Medical Center, where he died of his injuries, police said Saturday.

Moore and the other passenger, Justin P. Stearn, 19, of West Chester, sustained moderate injuries, police said. Police said that alcohol use was not suspected and that all three teens used seat belts.

Police, who believe speed was a factor in the crash, said the driver lost control of the Audi on a sharp curve of Chandler Road, just south of Conestoga Court in Pennsbury Township. The driver "tried to overcorrect the vehicle, striking a tree on the rear passenger side," where Regalado was sitting, police said.

The news of the fatality hit students and faculty members hard at Unionville High School. Regalado, a 2009 graduate, was a promising artist nominated for a regional award for his work on the set of "The Man Who Came to Dinner," the high school's 2009 play.

The school community was still mourning the death on July 30 of Jeffrey A. Wheet, the head of the school's art department, after a long illness. Wheet had been Regalado's teacher and mentor.

After Wheet died, Regalado posted a Facebook photo that showed him with Wheet, both giving an enthusiastic "thumbs-up."

"It's been a difficult couple of weeks," said Dan Gower, 19, a friend who worked with Regalado for four years on the stage crew. "He was the kind of person who radiated kindness to everyone."

Gower said he and some other friends were hosting "a celebration" of Regalado's life, which will follow a school memorial for Wheet on Tuesday evening.

"Okie was not the kind of person who would want people to mourn," said Gower.

Marco Sordi, 19, a friend of Regalado's since 6th grade, agreed.

"We need to cherish the time we had with him," he said, adding that Regalado had been looking forward to returning to the Delaware College of Art and Design. "He loved art school."

Sordi said the outpouring of condolences that have proliferated by phone and on Facebook are a testament to the positive influence Regalado had.

"Some of the people didn't even know him well, but they knew he was special," Sordi said. "It's a terrible loss; he was one of the most genuine people you could ever meet."