Wife of 96-year-old man killed in wrong-way crash on I-75 speaks

COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. (WINK) — The wife of a 96-year-old man who was killed in a wrong-way three-vehicle DUI crash in Collier County speaks out about her husband.

Pamela Gilbert said her husband worked for Chevron for 37 years. The couple moved to Florida in 2017. She said with how active he was, you would never have guessed his age. 

"You would have thought he was 77, this man played tennis three times a week, and biked and hiked and you name it," Pamela Gilbert said. 

Jon Mathewson, a friend of Gilbert, said he and Gilbert led hikes in his hometown of Dorset, Vermont, where he spent the summers.

Mathewson pointed to the view from a bench at Gilbert's Lookout in Dorset as a way to remember his friend. 

"He's going to be a great loss. Just his knowledge and his enthusiasm are just so memorable," Mathewson said. 

Pamela Gilbert said her husband would have turned 97 on April 9.

Arthur was killed following a deadly three-way crash on Interstate 75 early Wednesday morning. 

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Genise Gardenia Taylor, 24, crashed head-on into two cars on I-75 near the Immokalee Road exit, killing Gilbert. 

Troopers say Taylor was under the influence when she drove north in the southbound lanes of I-75. 

Taylor was arrested, and faces a DUI manslaughter charge. A Collier County judge denied bond for a visibly-shaken Taylor on Thursday. The judge ordered Taylor not to have any contact with the third driver who survived the crash.

The 24-year-old was in a wheelchair at the Collier County jail and joined the hearing over video. Taylor's grandmother, great-grandmother, and brother appeared in court. They declined to speak on-camera but said Taylor's child is with them. 

Pamela spoke on how Arthur was admired by the community, saying, “He's just admired, just totally admired by anyone who met him. He was well respected by the community here in Naples.”

Pamela added, “He'll be sorely missed by everybody, everybody sorely missed just as a fabulous, wonderful human being. Absolutely wonderful.”