Meg Hughes was, by many accounts, a lively young woman whose happiness and excitement for God spread to others easily. Jennifer Carter, Meg’s friend, was thought of similarly and brought smiles to friends on dreary days. And Benjamin Leonard, Meg’s younger brother, was outgoing with a worldly perspective.

On Oct. 27, one man’s tragic decision would end their lives.

Andi Hughes, Meg and Benjamin’s sister and senior in communication, said one of her strongest convictions is against drinking and driving.

“There will never be a time when I ever excuse someone for doing that,” she said. “It’s so cliche to say, ‘Don’t drink and drive,’ but when you actually are a victim of it, it puts you in a whole ‘nother perspective.”

Pastor Rios Sanchez, 56, had been drinking when he tried to pass a car on a two-lane road on NC-42 and ran head-on into the car Meg was driving. She and Carter, 18, were pronounced dead at the scene, and 16-year-old Leonard later died at the hospital, according to reports.

Sanchez pleaded guilty to three counts of involuntary manslaughter.

On Aug. 14, he was sentenced to four to five years in prison. As part of a plea agreement, several offenses were dismissed, including a DWI charge, a charge of driving with no operator’s license, a charge of driving the wrong way on a dual-lane road and a charge of having an unsealed wine container in the passenger seat.

Also living in the United States illegally, Sanchez will also face federal charges and deportation once he completes his sentence.

Meg wanted to be an emergency medical technician and had recently moved to Raleigh where she finally got her life where she wanted it, Andi said.

“The Christmas before she moved to Raleigh, she and I sat in a Walgreen’s parking lot for four hours and went back and forth about why she needed to live in Raleigh, why she didn’t need to live in Charleston,” Andi said. “I’ll always remember what it was like sitting there and really talking about everything, and we both grew a lot in that conversation. That really defined a lot of what we did.”

The sisters had a lot in common, but one clear difference was Meg’s creativity, Andi said.

“The best thing about Meg was her excitement for God and how that was so uniquely expressed,” Andi said. “She was so much more creative than me. And she really just always had interesting and great ways of reaching out to students.”

Meg became involved with Grace, a non-denominational church that meets on campus. It was here that she met Carter.

“[Carter’s] one of those people you just knew was going to do great things with her life,” said Kristin Curtis, a freshman in English. Curtis met Carter, also a freshman in English, in Sunday school class in fifth grade. “She was very, very religious and just the sweetest person you’d ever meet. I always felt proud that she was my friend.”

Curtis said the best thing about Carter was her acceptance of everyone, even though she had very strong personal beliefs.

Zach Spinks, junior in mechanical engineering, met Meg and Carter at Grace Community Church. He and Meg started a Bible study on East Campus to reach out to students, and Carter was the first person to come to the study.

“They were both really similar in that they were both very outgoing and always happy and upbeat and able to bring a smile to your face no matter what kind of day you were having,” Spinks said.

Spinks recalled when he was walking back from class during a rainy, downcast day and ran into Carter, who was carrying an umbrella and smiling.

“I just remember thinking that it was like the rain couldn’t even touch her, and that’s kind of the lasting impression I have of her: that no matter what was going on in her life, she never let it get her down,” Spinks said. “I honestly don’t think I ever once saw her unhappy.”

Andi said Grace was both Meg’s and Jennifer’s life, and that Leonard had begun taking the same path when the accident occurred. She added they had a unique brother-sister relationship.

“He was the greatest little big brother ever because he was 16 and seven years younger than me, but he was very protective and loving,” Andi said.

Leonard wanted to be an Air Force pilot, and was planning on playing football as a freshman at Western Harnett High School.

“He was literally the greatest 16-year-old who ever walked the planet,” Andi said. “It’s rare for a 16-year-old to think about other people other than himself. It’s also even more rare for a 16-year-old to have a world perspective of people need to know God. And he had that; he believed it.”

Andi said the law was fulfilled in sentencing Sanchez to four to five years, and while some days she feels he deserves more time, she does not feel bitterness toward him, because he will have to live with the consequences of his actions.

“No matter how much time he spends in prison, he will always have to live with that memory,” Andi said. “And I don’t think it was a vengeful crime; it wasn’t like he purposely did it, so I don’t feel like the memory will ever escape him.”

Spinks said he feels the same way.

“I’ve never felt any ill-will or hatred towards him, and I would think that more than any other punishment, it’s got to hurt him just to live with what he’s done,” he said.

Curtis said while his punishment won’t make up for the fact that lives were lost, Carter wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

“I don’t think anything that anyone could do could ever bring back Jenny or be enough for taking her away from us,” Curtis said, “but I also know that she would have forgiven him and would have been sympathetic with his family, and she wouldn’t want any more punishment than that.”

Andi said she believes laws need to be tougher, and that may help deter drunken drivers.

“If one person would stop and think twice about it, and if that one decision allows other people to live, then it’s worth it,” Andi said. “If it stops one parent from grieving and crying over losing a son or daughter, stops one sister, or one brother, or one church, or one community of people from mourning over someone passing away, then it’s worth it.”

Curtis said the accident has caused her to be more cautious when around people who are drinking.

“Jen was killed in a drunken-driving accident, and I know people like to go out and have a good time,” Curtis said. “Every time I go out now, I think about that, and if I see someone else, I stop them because you never know what’s going to happen, and you really don’t want to take someone’s life or be responsible for that guilt for taking someone like Jenny out of the world.”