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Man Killed In Interstate 4 Pileup Leaves Devastated Family

Photo courtesy of Mary Ussery

Pamela and Darren Scott Snyder were married just seven months before his death.

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By D'ANN LAWRENCE WHITE | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 10, 2008

LAKELAND - He woke up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee Wednesday morning.

Most weekday mornings, Darren Scott Snyder, who preferred to go by his middle name, was the first one up at the Auburndale house where he lived with his wife, Pamela, and in-laws, Mary and Don Ussery.

He always set his alarm for 4 a.m. to make it to his job as an air-conditioning apprentice for Walt Disney World's Animal Kingdom at 6 a.m. But on Jan. 9, his mother-in-law got the head start on the day and Snyder had the luxury of having coffee waiting for him.

He was always in a good mood, Mary Ussery said, one of those guys who wore a perpetual smile.

However, he was especially jovial that morning because he'd just passed the midterm exam for his Disney apprenticeship. He had just a year to go. Then he'd have a new career and he and his wife of seven months could quit mooching off his in-laws and buy their own home.

With everyone else still in bed, Ussery and her son-in-law spent a quiet half hour sipping coffee before he went to shower and dress in his khaki Disney uniform.

"A few minutes after 5, he was putting on his boots and he said, 'I love you mama. Have a good day,' and then he left," Ussery said. Hearing the door, the dog awoke and Pamela Snyder got out of bed to let the dog out. About five minutes later, Scott Snyder returned. He'd forgotten his sunglasses in his wife's car.

He retrieved them and told Pamela Snyder goodbye before getting back into his two-door red Mustang with the black racing stripe.

Snyder had no way of knowing that he wouldn't need those sunglasses. He was headed straight into a dark abyss from which he'd never escape.

A day later, Ussery was told it was her son-in-law that Polk County Sheriff's Deputy Carlton Turner watched burn to death in his car in the pileup Wednesday on Interstate 4 involving 70 vehicles and claiming four lives.

Ussery was the only family member who would speak about Snyder. Exhausted, grief-stricken, frustrated at waiting so long for news and then upset at being bombarded by requests for interviews by the media, the rest of Snyder's family barricaded themselves in the Lakeland home of his parents, Lee and Sharon Snyder. That's where Snyder lived along with his brother, Daniel, before getting married just seven months before.

A cousin introduced Snyder to Pamela Hollingsworth, and the two dated for about a year before marrying on June 12.

"He said he finally met the woman of his dreams," Ussery said. Pamela Snyder had two grown children from a previous marriage and Scott Snyder was looking forward to becoming a step grandfather soon.

Ussery learned about the horrific accident on I-4 after she arrived at work at a local plumbing business. She immediately called her daughter to ask if she'd heard from Scott Snyder. Pamela Snyder had already attempted to call and text message her husband but had not been able to reach him.

"I knew in my heart it wasn't good," said Ussery. "I knew he was on that road when all this unfolded."

Throughout the day, the family called hospitals, television stations, fire rescue stations and the highway patrol, seeking information.

"It was the longest day of our lives," Ussery said.

Finally, at 4:30 p.m., Daniel and Lee Snyder drove to the highway patrol command post and demanded answers. They were told that officials were 90 percent sure that Scott Snyder was among the dead based on the make and model of the car, but they needed dental records for verification.

It was a cruel a blow for the close-knit family that wasn't shy about hugging and kissing one another and enjoyed playing practical jokes, Ussery said. When the media asked them about Scott Snyder, she said they were too devastated to speak.

"Scott was such a fun-loving guy. Everyone loved him, especially his nieces and nephews. They called him Uncle Dog. He loved to cook and barbecue on the grill, go fishing and play Texas Hold 'Em with our neighbors," Ussery said. "That's what we'll have to focus on not how he died but how he lived."

Reporter/columnist D'Ann Lawrence White can be reached at (813) 657-4524 or dlwhite@tampatrib.com.

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