‘A real beacon of light’: Former Hilton Head art teacher, 36, dies in Upstate crash
Hilton Head Island native Jessica Hipp-Mercer Munyon, an art teacher, wife and mother of a 6-year-old, was killed Wednesday afternoon in a horrific crash in Spartanburg County, where she had lived with her young family for the past two years.
She was 36 years old and full of wit. That’s how family and friends will remember her.
Her older brother, Jonathan, will always think of his sister’s cleverness and the way she lit up a room with her smile.
Her mother, Terry Hipp, will cherish their afternoon Facetime sessions with Munyon’s 6-year-old daughter, Leah.
Although Munyon had left the Lowcountry, Hilton Head’s students may remember her as an art teacher at Hilton Head Island Elementary School for the Creative Arts.
And Hilton Head High School’s Class of 2002 may remember her as a member of a tight-knit group of girls who headed to University of South Carolina after graduation.
Above all, Munyon was an artistic soul who would drop anything to help a friend.
‘Devastating’
Munyon died Wednesday around 4 p.m. after her car was hit by a Cadillac on Blackstock Road in Spartanburg County, according to reporting from local news outlets.
Two different police agencies had been pursuing the Cadillac prior to the crash, but both departments stopped their pursuit due to the driver’s reckless nature and speed, the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office told local media.
The collision was described by the sheriff’s office as “violent,” and Hipp told The Island Packet that her daughter’s car was split in half. She died at the scene.
Munyon was on the way to pick up her daughter from school when the Cadillac hit her.
She exchanged texts with her mom just 30 minutes before she died.
FOX Carolina has reported that a suspect is in custody from the crash that killed Munyon, but the person’s name has not been released. The Greenville County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the crash.
Munyon was working from home as an art teacher at the S.C. Whitmore School, a profession she inherited from both Hipp and her father, Larry Mercer, who taught in the Beaufort County School District.
She loved being able to work from home and spend time with Leah, Hipp said.
Hipp remembers elaborate sets her daughter created for Leah’s Barbie dolls. She Facetimed the girls every day to play Barbies with Leah and give Munyon a chance to work.
Munyon made a beach, grocery store, doctor’s office and other sets on poster board for her mother and daughter to use in their adventures. Her attention to detail shone through as she created new worlds for Leah and Hipp to explore.
“I hope she’ll be remembered as a smart, funny young lady with a wicked sense of humor who loved her family,” Hipp said Thursday.
Munyon and her husband of seven years, Michael, lived just 30 minutes from her brother in the Spartanburg area. She saw her brother on Sunday, when the two sat outside and visited while their kids played together.
“It was like the one moment where it felt normal again,” Hipp Mercer said of visiting with his sister during the COVID-19 pandemic. “I’m just so glad I got to see her.”
Hipp Mercer said he remembers how selfless and humble his younger sister was. Even though they were four years apart, the two were inseparable when they were growing up on Hilton Head.
“It’s just devastating,” he said of the crash. “She was wonderful, but she would never admit to that. She really lit up (the room). She was a real beacon of light, but I don’t think she’d ever say that about herself.”
The Hipp Mercer family is planning a Zoom memorial for Munyon, but has not set details for the service.
This story was originally published February 11, 2021 at 3:46 PM.
