The cause of a single vehicle crash that claimed killed a 48-year-old Damariscotta woman Sunday morning remains under investigation.

Meanwhile, a high school classmate of Melissa Sawyer has started a fundraising campaign on social media to create a memorial scholarship fund that will benefit Sawyer’s children.

Sawyer, a longtime Waldoboro resident and former middle school secretary, died after her SUV went over a guardrail and landed in the Medomak River sometime between 8:30 p.m. Saturday evening and Sunday morning. A passing motorist notified police just before 7 a.m. that there was a partially submerged vehicle lying on its roof in the river, at the intersection of Route 1 and Route 32 in downtown Waldoboro.

Lynn Simmons Wolford, who went to middle school and high school with Sawyer, said her friend loved her four children, which is what motivated her to do something that would benefit their education. Wolford, who graduated with Sawyer from Medomak Valley High School in 1987, now lives in Kentucky. She remained in contact with Sawyer through Facebook.

“I always admired the fierce and unconditional love that Melissa displayed for her children,” Wolford wrote on the gofundme campaign site. “I know that it would make Melissa happy to see all of her children meet the educational goals necessary to achieve their dreams, so I’m setting an initial goal of $25,000 to raise a scholarship in memory of Melissa.”

As of Monday evening, Wolford had raised more than $3,300 for the scholarship fund.

Waldoboro Police Chief William Labombarde said Sunday that investigators do not know why Sawyer’s motor vehicle struck a guardrail and landed in the river. Labombarde could not be reached for comment on Monday.

Dennis Hoey can be contacted at 791-6365 or at:

dhoey@pressherald.com