RINCON — Two of Effingham County’s biggest cheerleaders were silenced in tragic fashion.

David and Julie Hagan, 45 and 43, respectively, were killed in a one-vehicle crash on I-16 near Swainsboro on Sept. 1. They were tremendous supporters of children — their own and others..

“To say they were involved is an understatement,” South Effingham competitive cheerleading coach Amanda Ramsey said. “They were always a part of everything that their kids did.”

The Hagans’ children — Madison, Joshua and Matthew — attended South Effingham and are currently students at Georgia Southern University. The accident occurred during the Hagans’ return from Georgia Southern’s season-opening football game against LSU in Baton Rouge, La.

Madison and Matthew are Eagles cheerleaders.

“Even after their kids graduated (South), the Hagans still had family members that were cheering here and they came to their competitions as well,” Ramsey said. “I’m sure they that they would have been there this year, too.”

“I only knew them for a short period but they were phenomenal people,” said Deirdre Froehlich, a former president of the South Effingham Football Booster Club. “Their support for South didn’t stop when their kids left.”

Froehlich and Danny Hagan worked together on booster projects for several years.

“He also served as president for a number of years and was really great,” Froehlich said. “He did everything for the kids and Julie was just as involved.”

“The Hagans, basically, never missed anything,” Ramsey said. “They were at every function. They were at every event. They were active members of the booster club.”

Froehlich was amazed by the Hagans’ commitment to children.

“They just really ingrained themselves in the community,” she said. “You can look on their Facebook page and see how many people they supported. On a weekend, Danny would take his niece out for dinner and movie, and Julie would do the same thing.

“They would travel to support their family and kids that had become part of their lives through cheer because they were part of Savannah cheer. 

The continued to support those kids in all aspects.”

“They were very young at heart and always doing something,” Ramsey said. “They were the kind of people that it didn’t matter what kind of situation they were in. They were going to make the best out of it.

“They were the parents that always had a good time wherever they went.”

Visitation for the Hagans is set Monday from 6-8 p.m. at Countryside Baptist Church across from South Effingham.

The funeral is slated Tuesday at 11 a.m. at the church and the burial ceremony will follow at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Savannah.